6: Death and Transfiguration
by rwparker
Summary: All good things must come to an end. Or must they? A story of Inuyasha and his daughter on a tragic, beautiful journey of loss and reunion, of endings and beginnings.
1. Departure

**Death and Transfiguration**

* * *

Departure

* * *

"Dad...c'mon! We're going to be late!" 

Izayoi gave the clock an exasperated look and sighed; Kagome giggled. It was like this every year.

"Just need to find my hat," came Inuyasha's voice from the other room, accompanied by a loud crashing and banging. "Where have those darned kids hidden it?" Another crash. Izayoi buried her face in her hands; Kagome laughed again.

"Uncle Souta, maybe you and Aunt Hitomi had better go on ahead," said Izayoi wearily. "We'll get there..." Another crash from the next room, and the sound of Inuyasha muttering profanities under his breath. "...eventually."

The Higurashi temple had seen its share of triumph and tragedy over the years, but rarely had such peace and prosperity blessed its guardian family. Souta had married his childhood sweetheart Hitomi, and soon they had filled the ancient courtyards with the sweet laughter of happy children; and in due time, the courtyard had been filled again, now with the voices of grandchildren. Souta had taken over the duties of the temple priest, and since he also had the family gift of spiritual power, his custodianship of the temple was a good deal more effective than his grandfather's. Kagome maintained her double life in the past and the present, and was much beloved in both worlds. Kagome remained strong, agile, and spry as the years passed, and her spiritual power only increased, rather than dimmed, with age. The only clear evidence of the passing of years was that Kagome's thick black hair gradually turned a shimmering silver gray, which Inuyasha in a rare burst of poetry had lovingly termed "the color of the evening star;" and she became the greatly adored "Grandma Kagome" in both the feudal and the modern era. Inuyasha was as ageless as all hanyous, and he never lost his youthful spunk; but his shoulders did become regally broad. And the older he became, the more he came to resemble his great father; and his noble bearing provided a fitting counterpoint to Kagome's stately wisdom.

Izayoi spent much of her time in the feudal era with her beloved Shippou, but she never lost touch with her roots in the modern world. She went adventuring with her mother and father as often as they traveled into the past, and in the modern era she became the beloved, jolly, and cantankerous "Auntie Izayoi" to Souta's family. She was a favorite at temple festivals for her flower arranging and ceremonial archery, but a holy terror towards any child that didn't show the proper respect for her tools or her work. She even stayed in touch with her best friends from high school...although they constantly groused about how Izayoi always managed to look no older than she did on the day that they all graduated.

One of the children came up to Kagome and tugged at her sleeve. "Grandma Kagome," the little girl asked sweetly, "Will you come see me at the concert this year?"

"I'll try," said Kagome smiling. "I'm a little tired today. Perhaps I'll get there later. But even if I don't make it...do your best!"

"I will," piped the little girl, hugging Kagome. "Goodbye, Grandma Kagome!" She called to the next room, "Goodbye, Grandpa Inuyasha!"

"How many times have I told you never to call me that?" came an angry shout. Another crash. "Oh. Here it is." Inuyasha emerged with his baseball cap, brushing dust off his sleeves. "Aren't you ready yet? We're going to be late!"

Izayoi sighed wearily; Kagome laughed again. "Be patient with your father, dear. Lord knows I have." She hugged Izayoi, and then said, "You two go off without me. I'm a little tired today. Just be sure you keep a close eye on your father." Kagome whispered conspiratorially to Izayoi. "I still don't trust him out of my sight, and neither should you."

They both laughed, Izayoi hugged her mother again, and then she grabbed Inuyasha by the hand. "Come on, Dad, let's go," she said as she dragged him out the door.

"Have fun, dears!" shouted Kagome after them.

The high-school culture festival was always full of people in fanciful costumes, so it was the one place that Izayoi and Inuyasha could go about with their ears uncovered; and so, they never missed a festival. This year, one of Souta's grandchildren was performing. The family had taken up its usual position at the back of the room, where they could keep a firm hand on Inuyasha and quietly explain the proceedings to him without disturbing anyone else. Souta's granddaughter had just finished soldiering her way through a violin etude and was taking her bow, when Inuyasha grabbed his chest in pain and sank to his knees. "Kagome..." he gasped. "Something's happened to Kagome. I heard her... I heard her call to me..."

Izayoi was helping him to his feet, trying to get him to tell her more, when Grandma Hitomi's phone rang. She answered the phone, then she blanched and clutched at her own chest. She hung up the phone and whispered to Izayoi, "Get your father home..._now._" Izayoi led Inuyasha out of the auditorium, and Hitomi could see them dashing along the rooftops, running home as fast as they could go.

* * *

When Inuyasha and Izayoi arrived at the temple, they found Kagome lying against the Goshinboku. At first, she seemed to be sleeping, and she was smiling, her face utterly at peace; but when Inuyasha took her hand, it was cold and still. 

"NO! KAGOME!" Inuyasha screamed. He recoiled from her, his hands shaking; then he grabbed for a sword at his belt. "This time, I've _got_ Tenseiga... _This _time, I can save you, Kagome!" Inuyasha desperately fumbled for Tenseiga, pulling it sheath and all from his belt. His hands finally found the handle, and he ripped the sword out of its sheath and hurled the sheath to the ground. He raised Tenseiga high above his head, ready to bring it down and bring Kagome back to life; but suddenly he froze, transfixed by something that only he could see.

Izayoi watched as Inuyasha's face twisted with anguished puzzlement. Whatever it was that he saw, it was clear that he did not understand it at all, and his mouth moved as though he were arguing with someone or something, but no sound emerged. After a few moments, Inuyasha dropped Tenseiga, and he collapsed to his knees, his shaking hands covering his ashen face.

"Daddy! What's wrong with you? What are you doing? You've got to save Mom!" shouted Izayoi, and she leapt to his side, grabbed Tenseiga, and swung it to the ready. Instantly, Tenseiga revealed to her what Inuyasha had just seen: four minions of the underworld, clearly sent to consume Kagome's soul...but they were already lying motionless, quite dead—impaled by shimmering arrows of gold.

"Honestly—did they think I was going to go _that_ easily?" came a warm chuckle; and Izayoi turned to see Kagome standing next to her. Gone was any sign of the toll of age and time; her hair was lustrous obidian black, and her smooth face glowed with youth and joy. She was clothed in living light, by a gentle glow that seemed to come from somewhere deep within her very self; and when she spoke, the air quivered faintly with music.

Kagome's shining spirit went to her body, which lay slumped against the Goshinboku. She knelt beside it and stroked its hair lovingly. "This old body..." she said, gently smiling, "It ran a good race. I was sorry to leave it...but its time had come, I'm afraid." She stood, and turned to Izayoi. "I've died before, you know," she said thoughtfully, "And it's really not that bad. A moment's pain; the body's panic, and sadness at its loss; and then, just the tiniest wrench. And then...your true self, freed from its mortal shell." Kagome pirouetted merrily and she laughed again, a sweet clear sound like the ringing of silver bells; and there was such joy in Kagome's voice that even in her grief, Izayoi could not help but smile at her mother's laughter.

"I've lived and died many times before, " Kagome continued, "But always as a maiden." Kagome's shining spirit went to Inuyasha; she tenderly put her hand on his head, and the pain on his face softened slightly. "I was only once a wife..." she said softly; then she turned and put her other hand on Izayoi's heart, and she smiled as she said, "...and only once a mother."

Kagome sighed, and she laid her hand on Izayoi's sword arm and gently encouraged her to lower Tenseiga. "Please don't try to bring me back," Kagome said, gently but firmly. "Don't let your father try to bring me back. We would just come back to this same crossroad again, again, and again, until even Tenseiga could not restore me—and then your father would hate himself for the rest of his life because he had failed, at the last, to save me." Kagome laid her hand on Inuyasha's head again. "He doesn't understand right now...but eventually, he will accept this as my choice. If I let him bring me back, even once... one day he could no longer do so, and he would never forgive himself for something that he would always see as his greatest failure."

Kagome took Izayoi's hand between her own shining hands. "Scatter my ashes at the foot of the Goshinboku, both here and in the past. I promise that no matter where you are, I will be watching over you. With your spiritual power, you may be able to see me, or maybe even talk to me...and I'd like that. I'd really like that." Kagome sighed again. "Please help your father. This will be worse for him than it will be for you, because he has lost me so many times before. I wish I could make it easier for him...but I can't. Maybe you can help him to understand. I hope so."

Kagome smiled, and she said tenderly. "Always remember that I love you, my dearest little princess."

"And that we love you too." Izayoi heard the voices of Kagome's long-departed mother and father coming from the leaves of the Goshinboku, and two golden lights grew into being on either side of Kagome. When she saw them, Kagome's smile grew even broader, and she stretched her arms out in welcome. The light that was Kagome's spirit began to grow brighter, so bright that Izayoi could no longer bear to look on it.

"Tell your father that he'll see me again, and soon...and that I'll always be with you...with both of you." There was a flash, and a sound that was beautiful beyond description...and she was gone.

* * *

Izayoi wordlessly sheathed Tenseiga, and thrust it into her own belt. She knelt next to Inuyasha, and rested her head on his shoulder. "Oh Daddy," she said, trying to maintain her composure for his sake, "I'm so sorry...but Mom said everything was going to be fine...Mom's OK...you saw her too...and she said that you'd see her again soon...oh, Daddy..." Izayoi's voice broke, and she sobbed inconsolably as she hugged her father. 

"Hush, princess," he whispered, but he could manage to say nothing more, and his hands shook as he stroked Izayoi's hair. In a few moments, he gently withdrew from Izayoi, and he went to Kagome's body and cradled it in his arms, rocking her, speaking softly to her and trying desperately to hold back the tears. Izayoi sat next to the two of them for a few minutes; then she left Inuyasha with Kagome and joined the rest of the family, who had gathered around the Goshinboku at a respectful distance. Souta and Hitomi each put an arm around Izayoi, and they gently led her and the family back to the family residence, leaving Inuyasha alone with Kagome.

Inuyasha stayed with Kagome all day, holding her in his arms, gently speaking tender words that none but the two of them ever heard.

It was not until the sun had nearly set that Izayoi was able to coax her father into letting Kagome go; and Izayoi and Souta together led Inuyasha back to the family home, so that they could take care of what was necessary.

* * *

Inuyasha never had much patience for human ceremony or legal traditions, either in the feudal or the modern era; and he was less tolerant than ever in the days preceding the funeral. His foul mood nearly brought him to blows several times with people who did not deserve his rage, and Izayoi had to speak with him very sternly to calm him down. She handled most of the necessary arrangements with Souta and Hitomi's help, but on legal matters that could only be handled by a husband's signature, Izayoi begged to take the papers home to be signed, saying that her father was beside himself with grief and was in seclusion (which was not that far from the truth, actually). She simply signed his name herself when nobody was watching, snickering when she added the last name "Higurashi," something that she knew he quite despised. 

Inuyasha could not bear to attend the funeral at the place at Izayoi's side that had been prepared for him, but Izayoi did see him standing in the temple's open doorway, watching. Even the discussion of cremation and the spreading of Kagome's ashes was more than he could withstand; he fled the room every time the topic was mentioned. Of all the family, only Izayoi had the emotional strength to handle the urn, and to spread the ashes on the roots of the Goshinboku. But Inuyasha had watched that, too, from the window of Kagome's old room; and that night, he lay at the foot of the great tree, speaking softly to Kagome, until sleep finally overcame him.

Inuyasha had discovered that he could remove his prayer-bead necklace after Kagome died, and doing so nearly broke his heart anew. But Izayoi took the necklace from him, and wove the beads onto strands of her mother's long silver hair, and bound Kagome's wedding ring into the necklace, around a central bead of gold. And she laid upon the necklace a new enchantment, something very tender and subtle: the scent of Kagome's hair would never fade, and each time Inuyasha handled the ring and gold bead, the darkness of his grief would be gently purified, softly transformed into blessed memory. When Izayoi was finished, she took the necklace to her father and solemnly lowered the necklace over his head; and she put her hand on his heart, and she said, "Remember Kagome."

And Inuyasha put his hand on hers, and touched the ring, and for the first time in many days, he smiled; and he said softly, "I will."

* * *

Although she hadn't said anything to him about they way he stayed at the periphery of the ceremonies in the modern era, Izayoi was quite firm with her father about what needed to happen back in the feudal era. "You owe it to Aunt Sango and Uncle Miroku, and to Shippou, to tell them yourself. I'm not doing this one for you." Inuyasha reluctantly agreed; but when the time came to head down the well, he quietly took the urn from Izayoi and said softly, "I think I need to carry her...this one last time." 

Everyone was heartbroken to hear the news. Shippou and Sango wept openly, and Miroku did his best to maintain his priestly reserve for Sango's sake, but for those who knew him, his grief was plain to see. When it came time to scatter Kagome's ashes at the Goshinboku, this time all five of them held the urn—even Inuyasha—and Miroku said the most eloquent and moving prayers of his life as the gray ashes floated gently down, quietly glittering when they touched the soft, green earth.

Izayoi left her father and the others alone at the Goshinboku, so that the four friends could have some time alone with each other. She stopped at an old wooden shrine, looked around to make sure that she was alone, then knelt before it. From the sleeve of her kimono, she withdrew a small pouch, and sprinkled its contents onto the earth, and then began scratching the fine dust into the earth with her claws.

While she was working, Shippou emerged from the glade, and put his hand kindly on her shoulder. "Za-chan," he said softly, "Are you OK?"

"Yeah...mostly," she said.

"You know... that this is Kikyou's grave, don't you?" he asked gently.

"Uh-huh," she nodded, not looking up from her work.

"Ah...Za-chan...you know that your mom and Kikyou were... rivals for your father's love, don't you? That...things were never really... good, between them?"

"Yeah, I know all about that," said Izayoi. She finished her work, brushed the soil off her hands, then stood and put her arm around Shippou. "I also know that they were the same soul, and how much it cost each of them—both of them—to be ripped apart like that. I know that in life they never really got along... but somehow, I think that the person that was Kagome always wanted to reconcile with the person that was Kikyou. And maybe, by sharing the same earth, they can mend their differences and become the one person that they truly were meant to be."

"You have a good heart, Za-chan," said Shippou, kissing Izayoi tenderly on the top of her head. "Just like your mother."

"I hope so, Po-chan," Izayoi sighed. "I hope so."

* * *

The Higurashi temple was, of course, profoundly affected by Kagome's passing; but the celebration of life was as much of its substance as wood and stone, and the cloud of sorrow did not hang over the temple for long—and that was exactly what Kagome would have wanted. Soon the courtyard was echoing with the laughter of children again, and the flags of mourning were replaced with colorful banners of the seasons, and life went on: which is, of course, what life always does. 

But Kagome's passing marked the end of Inuyasha's days in the modern era. In a few weeks he seemed to be back to his old self, shouting angrily as always at the children when they called him "Grandpa Inuyasha," but as merrily as always taking them for rides on his shoulders, bounding from building to building, laughing as loudly as his passengers. However, he stopped sleeping in the bed that he and Kagome had shared; her scent, lingering on the pillows, had brought him comfort in the first few days alone, but now it only reminded him of his lonliness. Instead, he had begun sleeping in the branches of the Goshinboku. He confided to Izayoi that when the wind rustled the leaves, he could hear Kagome's laughter.

One day, he came to the family at breakfast and announced that he was leaving, later that very day. When they insisted that he return frequently to visit, he of course reassured them that he would be back often, but everyone knew that this was most probably the final farewell. He took with him only those few small remembrances that he could carry in his kimono, and he gave the rest of his and Kagome's worldly possessions to Izayoi. "I'll keep them just the way they are, in case you ever want them," Izayoi had said; but she knew from her father's listless "uh-huh" that he had no intention of ever returning to claim them.

Inuyasha took one last look around at the room that he and Kagome had shared for so many years, and he whispered softly, "Goodbye." Then he turned and without looking back headed out of the house, crossing the courtyard and heading to the well-house.

There he saw that the entire family had assembled to give him a hero's farewell. They cheered, and waved flags and fans, and wished him well and begged him to return someday and see them all again. Inuyasha looked for Izayoi, to say goodbye to her, but he saw her nowhere; so he sighed, and waved to the cheering children, merrily shouting "See ya!" and walked into the well-house.

Standing at the well was Souta, his wife Hitomi, and their eldest daughter. Souta took Inuyasha's hand in his, and blessed him; and he said, "This temple will always be your home, and your daughter's home; and I give you my most solemn vow that it will be a home to her children, and her children's children, as long as one stone stands upon another." He put his hand on Inuyasha's shoulders, looked deeply into his eyes, and said gently, "Please don't be a stranger, Inu-ni-chan. I just lost my sister. I don't want to lose my brother too."

"You won't. I'll be back. I promise," said Inuyasha; but this time, he meant it. He hugged Souta and Hitomi and their daughter, stood on the lip of the well, and said mischievously, "You won't get rid of me _that_ easily—I'll be back!" He smiled, and waved, and he jumped into the well; and with a flash, he was gone.

* * *

When Inuyasha climbed out of the well in the feudal era, Izayoi was waiting for him. "Took you long enough," she said with a twinkle in her eye. "I was starting to think that you had changed your mind and were sitting in front of the television, playing games with the kids." She held out her hand to her father, smiled, and said, "C'mon. I think we both need a little time to get over Mom's death... and we need to spend that time together. What were you planning to do... go somewhere to mope, hack a few youkai to bits, then mope some more?" She laughed. "Not a chance... Po-chan!" 

There was a loud pop, and Shippou appeared, in the form of a large pink ball with big goofy eyes—the same form that he had taken so often when he was just a child. Inuyasha nearly fell over laughing at the sight, and shortly he and Izayoi clambered up and sat cross-legged on top of Shippou, just as he and Kagome had done so often in their early days together.

"Shippou—onward to adventure!" Izayoi yelled, and slapped Shippou enthusiastically.

"Ow—not so hard!" Shippou whimpered, but he quickly rose into the air and off they sailed, laughing and talking merrily of old times.


	2. Memories

**Death and Transfiguration**

* * *

Memories

* * *

Izayoi and Inuyasha lounged upon Shippou's back as he floated gently in the wind. 

"Oh...this takes me back," Inuyasha said as he stretched out and rested his head on his hands. "Fighting Naraku was hard, but there were good times, too. We saw a lot of beautiful countryside—do you remember all those long days...floating on Hatchi, or flying on Kirara?"

"Those were good times," Shippou agreed.

"I'm sorry I missed them," said Izayoi, fondly patting Shippou. "It always sounded so exciting, just the five of you against the world." Something in the landscape below caught her attention. She leaned out, looking for something; then she pointed and laughed. "There—you see that? Isn't that where we all had that awful fight?"

Inuyasha followed Izayoi's pointing finger to see a cozy bend in a stream, surrounded by pine trees. "Yup, that's the place," he said, laughing. "How could I forget?"

Izayoi patted Shippou as she spoke. "That's where I had that really big blow-up with Mom about you, Shippou." She giggled girlishly. "You and I had always slept together since we were kids, and that's the place Mom came to me one night, all embarrassed, and she said that I couldn't sleep with you any more because I was too big. I didn't understand how my size made any difference, and she couldn't bring herself to talk about what she was _really_ worried about, of course. And this was before I knew that 'sleeping together' could mean anything besides...y'know, _sleeping_, or that there even _was_ anything to do with each other besides sleeping."

She giggled again, "And so, here I am in tears, crying, 'Why can't I sleep with Po-chan? I want to sleep with Po-chan!' And Shippou's crying too, and he's yelling, 'I want to sleep with Za-chan,' and we're both crying and yelling about wanting to sleep with each other...and Mom was just mortified, and we just kept yelling louder, and that just made things worse."

Shippou giggled too. "And then Miroku comes over to me and says, 'I never tried _crying..._ who knows—it just might work! Keep it up, my boy! I'm in your corner!' And of course I have no idea what he's talking about, but Sango hears what he's saying, and she starts yelling at him, and he yells at her, so she runs over and clobbers him."

Izayoi jumped in, "And then Mom's so mad, she yells at me, 'Izayoi—sit!' And of course nothing happens to me, but Dad hits the ground..."

"...And when he got up," laughed Shippou, "Oh, boy! We thought we'd seen fights before, when Inuyasha and Kagome would rip into each other...but we were sure that the three of you were going to kill each other. It took all three of us to pull you apart, and everybody was mad at everybody else, and nobody got any sleep that night."

"Except the two of you," chuckled Inuyasha. "We found the two of you the next morning, sleeping in each other's arms, with beautiful smiles on your faces, just like always..." He laughed and chummily hugged Izayoi's shoulders; she smiled and blushed. "And when your mother saw _that_, of course, it all started again."

"I don't know whether the village that hired us was more afraid of the youkai they asked us to exterminate, or of us," laughed Izayoi. "We were still mad at each other when we stomped into the village that afternoon. We must have really been something to look at—and those poor youkai! They never had a chance. We took out all those youkai in about three minutes, and we nearly leveled the village in the process. They just gave us our payment and kept bowing until we finally took the hint and left."

All three of them laughed heartily. Izayoi wiped her eyes as she said, "Oh boy...well, at least we took it out on the youkai rather than each other. Mom didn't really want to talk to me for a few days, but finally she stopped complaining about us sleeping with each other. Actually...I don't think she ever mentioned it again. I always wondered why."

"I talked her out of it," said Inuyasha. "It took me quite a while to calm her down, y'know. But after I stayed up a few nights and watched you two, and saw that all you were doing _was _sleeping, I managed to get her to back off. I mean, it kept you two quiet at night and let the rest of _us_ get some rest—and what was wrong with that?"

"Well, Dad, I guess Po-chan and I owe you an overdue thank-you," laughed Izayoi. "Anyway, about a week after the big fight, Aunt Sango took me aside and explained to me what Mom thought we were doing and why she wanted to keep us apart. I had never even imagined doing something like that—I was completely disgusted at just the thought."

"Good thing you got over _that_," said Shippou enthusiastically.

Izayoi blushed. "Po-chan!" she snapped, and thumped him soundly.

Shippou yelped in pain, and they suddenly lost altitude. Shippou yelped again as Inuyasha's claws dug in as he desperately grabbed for a handhold. In a few moments Shippou regained his composure and resumed a level flight, and Inuyasha growled, "That's enough, you two. Honestly, you're worse than Miroku and Sango."

Izayoi laughed. "'Honestly?' Did you just say 'honestly,' Dad? You sound just like Mom."

"I do?" Inuyasha asked; then, with a smug grin, he said, "Yeah...I guess I do." He lay down with his hands behind his head, smiled thoughtfully, and stared at the passing clouds in silence.


	3. Tears

**Death and Transfiguration**

* * *

Tears

* * *

Izayoi had been quite correct: Inuyasha had fully intended to simply wander off into the world, totally alone, and to "tough out" his grief—something that she knew would have been the worst thing he could have done for himself. She also knew that she would have worried herself sick over his welfare, and she would have eventually set off in search of him with little hope of ever finding him in the vastness of the feudal era—perhaps never to find him, always to wonder what had happened to him. 

But the long journey together turned out to be something that everyone sorely needed. As on any journey through grief to recovery, there were good days and bad. On good days, they laughed, and Shippou would sometimes sing some of the thousands of silly songs he claimed to know (but which Izayoi was beginning to think that he just made up on the spot, as they always seemed suspiciously pertinent to the day's events), and at night around the fire Inuyasha would tell them stories of the adventures of his early life, before he met Kagome or Kikyou (about whom, needless to say, he _never_ spoke).

And then there were bad days. Inuyasha would awaken them before dawn by merely saying "Let's go," and run without stopping, sometimes far into the night, when he would finally drop from exhaustion. He spent one entire week sitting in a tree, looking at the clouds by day and the stars by night, saying nothing, quietly rubbing Kagome's wedding ring hanging from his necklace. Once every few days he came down for water; he said nothing to Izayoi's or Shippou's questions, merely patting them on the shoulders as he passed.

One day—a day that had started out, at least, as a "good" day—Inuyasha had been running through the forest with Izayoi at his side, Shippou riding happily on her back, when Inuyasha suddenly stopped and sank dejectedly to his haunches.

"What's wrong, Dad?" asked Izayoi.

Inuyasha couldn't meet her eyes; he stared at the ground and said, very quietly, "Your mother rode on my back for so many years...and now, I only feel the wind there. My back feels...so empty..."

Izayoi walked behind him and put her hands lightly on his shoulders. "Daddy," she asked, "I'm tired. Would you carry me for a little while? Like you did when I was a little girl?"

A rare smile crept across Inuyasha's face. "Of course I will...my dear little princess." He stood up, and Izayoi climbed onto his back. "Thank you," he whispered. Off he ran with his daughter on his back, just as he had done so often in her childhood; and it seemed to Izayoi that even carrying her weight, his steps fell more lightly than they had before.

Shippou took the shape of a great bird and easily kept apace of them, sometimes flying next to them, sometimes soaring high above them, scanning the landscape. Presently, he landed on Izayoi's shoulder and whispered into her ear: "Tell Inuyasha to bear right, and follow the river to those rocks up ahead. It's the perfect place to stay tonight—and since it's the night of the new moon, we want to get there long before sunset."

Izayoi nodded, and relayed Shippou's advice to Inuyasha. He also nodded, and his pace quickened as he made for the place Shippou had found.

And it was indeed the perfect place to spend the night of the new moon. It was a wide meadow, in a clearing that was precisely at the bend of the river. There was a clear view of the river in both directions; the woody cover at the far side of the meadow was well out of the range of any archer less powerful than Izayoi; and a large and treacherous rocky outcropping provided cover for their backs. Inuyasha couldn't have been more pleased, and he patted Shippou vigorously on the back, pronouncing the find "the safest place I've ever spent a new moon." Before the sun set, Inuyasha used Tessaiga to blast a small cave into the rocks. Once night fell and everyone had settled in for the long watch, Izayoi cut off a few strands of her hair, and bound Tessaiga's sheath to two of her miko's arrows, which she drove point-first into the earth at the mouth of the cave. There was a pink flash, and everyone felt their hair standing slightly on end as Izayoi's barrier formed and stiffened. "That'll keep pretty much everything away from us," she said proudly, as she examined her handiwork. "And if there _is _anything strong enough to get through _that_ barrier..." she said, drawing one of her longest and nastiest-looking arrows out of her quiver and nocking it on the string of her bow, "It's not going to live long enough to brag about it to its friends."

The night of the new moon was always tense for everyone, but tonight was particularly bad. Inuyasha was bleaker than usual, and Izayoi, who was already worried enough about her father's emotional well-being, paced nervously at the mouth of the cave, her every sense reaching out to its furthest. Shippou sat tending the fire, feeling rather useless; but then he saw Inuyasha staring at the fire, two tiny tears glistening like fine jewels at the corners of his eyes, his shoulders quivering as he tried to maintain his composure. Shippou crossed the cave and whispered something to Izayoi. She nodded, and left the mouth of the cave to stand a respectful distance away in the middle of the meadow, her long white hair glowing faintly in the dim starlight.

Shippou sat down next to Inuyasha and put his arm around Inuyasha's shoulders. "Inuyasha..." he said gently. Inuyasha just sniffed and said nothing, his eyes never leaving the fire.

Shippou spoke intensely, but gently. "Inuyasha... you remember that day that you pulled Kagome out of the burning building, and we all thought she was dead... and you told me, 'Men don't cry.' I remember it like it was yesterday." Inuyasha nodded slightly. "I don't think I ever told you this before... but you're the one who really taught me how to _be _a man. Not Miroku— thank heavens, not Miroku—_ you_.When I met you, I was an orphan... but Kagome became my mom, and you became my dad, and you two taught me what it meant to be brave, and to be loving... and what it really meant to be a man. But I learned some other things from you, too, that I don't think you know that you taught me."

Shippou grasped a lock of Inuyasha's black human hair and held it up for Inuyasha to see. "You taught me... _this _taught me... that even the strong are weak sometimes, and that it's OK to need other people. That it's OK for others to help you, just as you help others. That there's no shame in weakness, because it happens to all of us, sometimes." He released Inuyasha's hair, and crossed his arms, and said a little sternly, "Kagome was worried about you doing something like this, you know. When I was just a little kid, she and Sango would let me bathe with them, and they thought because I was a little kid, I wouldn't understand what they were saying...but I did, and I never forgot it. Kagome knew that you let things eat you up inside, and that you have a tender heart, no matter what you want the rest of us to think—and she told Sango that she was worried that if something ever went really wrong and something happened to any of us, you'd spend the rest of your life in misery, because you would blame yourself for what happened, or because you would refuse to deal with your own feelings—or both."

Inuyasha turned his face away, but Shippou took him gently by the shoulders. "Kagome _never_ would have wanted this. You _know _that, Inuyasha. You _know_ that she wouldn't want you to live like this. And you know what else men do, Inuyasha? _Men always tell the truth_. You taught me that, too. And men _do_ cry, Inuyasha," Shippou said, tears falling gently from his eyes, "Men cry, because they tell the truth about how much they miss someone, and that truth honors the one we loved so much... the one who, no matter where they are, still loves us."

Inuyasha said nothing and stared at the fire, but his eyes slowly filled with tears, and his hands shook as he covered his face; and he screamed, "KAGOME!" and his anguished cry echoed off the walls of the cave and resounded through the meadow.

Hearing her father's scream, Izayoi rushed into the cave; and she found Inuyasha in Shippou's arms, sobbing bitterly, his head on Shippou's shoulder. Shippou's own eyes were wet as well, but he smiled as he looked at Izayoi, and he mouthed silently, "He'll be just fine." Izayoi sniffed and dabbed at her own eyes, but she nodded and smiled at Shippou, and she left the cave to resume the watch.

Just as the sun was rising, Izayoi returned to the cave. Shippou was leaning against the back wall of the cave, Inuyasha still in his arms. Inuyasha's face was still wet with tears, but his face was peaceful, and his breathing was smooth and quiet as he slept in Shippou's arms, where he had cried himself to sleep like a child. Shippou had faithfully kept watch, staying awake all night; and he looked kindly at Inuyasha, and he smiled at Izayoi, and he said softly, "I think everything is going to be OK now."


	4. The Festival

**Death and Transfiguration**

* * *

The Festival

* * *

The dark night of the new moon proved to be the turning point in their journey; and just as each passing evening grew brighter with the approach of the full moon, Inuyasha's mood became brighter with each passing day, and he showed every sign of returning to his old cantankerous but happy self. Now he never ran ahead or stayed by himself in the trees, but spent every day walking with Shippou and Izayoi, and his fireside tales gradually began to include stories of Kagome and their time together. Izayoi especially enjoyed hearing stories that her mother had already shared with her, now told afresh from her father's point of view; and she surprised herself at the number of times that she changed her mind about her father's behavior after hearing his side of the story. 

Izayoi was very much a child of the feudal era, and she enjoyed sleeping on the ground and living off the land as much as her father. But like her mother, she often craved hot meals, hot baths, and warm beds. From time to time, they sought out villages with youkai problems—which were, in that day and age, not at all difficult to find, especially for Inuyasha's keen sense of smell and Izayoi's spiritual powers—and there was no village so small or poor that they were not happy to be rid of a troublesome youkai for the small price of a home-cooked meal, a hot bath, and a bed for the night. It was extremely easy work for them, usually taking at most one swipe of Tessaiga or one shot from Izayoi's bow, and the ever-genial Shippou and his fox magic were always a big hit with the village children.

Everyone enjoyed these little vacations from life in the wild. As much as she loved hot springs, Izayoi absolutely adored being able to take a bath in a real tub. And as she luxuriated in her bath, Shippou would speak long into the night with Inuyasha, asking him the sorts of questions a son can only ask his father; and surprisingly, Inuyasha responded without his usual bluster, answering him as a father answers his son. Izayoi would always find them deep in conversation when she emerged from her bath, sometimes so intent that they paid no attention to her return, sometimes laughing uproariously, toasting each other merrily into the night with cups of tea.

They even spent some time visiting Miroku and Sango, whom they hadn't seen since Kagome's service at the Goshinboku. The old monk Mushin had left his temple in the care of Miroku, which proved to be the perfect place to raise Miroku's and Sango's many children. Miroku was, for all his faults, an excellent and compassionate priest; but unfortunately, his most marketable skill was as a con artist, a trade that Sango violently forbade him from pursuing. "How can your children look up to a father who's a liar and a thief?" she had snarled. But the always-enterprising Sango had a better idea, and soon the temple became the new home for a revival of the youkai exterminator's art. She would often take the eldest children on youkai hunts, leaving Miroku safely alone in the temple in charge of the youngest children, and she made them all quite a comfortable living. Theirs was a large and happy family, and when the children had grown, they married and raised large families of their own; and soon they outgrew even the temple's prodigious grounds. In time, the eldest children had taken their families and moved back to Sango's home village. Sango could not bear to raise her own children within sight of the graves of her kin, but her children felt very strongly about resuming the family trade in their ancestral home, so off they went; and from what news had reached Miroku and Sango, the old compound had come fully back to life and was already quite a success.

* * *

Spring passed into summer, and summer's heat was being replaced by autumn's chill; the nights were getting colder and the leaves had begun to turn brilliant shades of red and orange. Inuyasha, Shippou, and Izayoi were walking a forest path, enjoying the brisk bite of the autumn air, when Shippou suddenly gave a cry: "Stop!" He dove into the underbrush and began rummaging enthusiastically amongst the leaves of a rather undistinguished plant; then he leapt triumphantly to his feet. "Fox berries!" he cried jubilantly, and ran to the others with large handfuls of something that looked like crimson currents. Shippou carefully handed one each to Inuyasha and Izayoi; they munched on them thoughtfully, then smiled. 

"Hey...these are really good!" said Inuyasha. The berries were surprisingly juicy for something that had so much crunch, and had a sweet and vaguely smoky taste. "Let's have some more!" he said, reaching for the bunch in Shippou's hand.

"Er, excuse me, Inuyasha," said Shippou apologetically, "but I may be saving these for something special. Give me a minute." Shippou pushed his way back through the fox-berry bush into the forest, and they heard him muttering as he tromped about. "Moon flowers, rowan leaves, yes, yes," he said, "The bark of...yes! And mushrooms...no...not these...not these..._these_! And what about..." his voice trailed off as he went further into the forest; but in a few moments, they heard a whoop of joy, and Shippou came crashing through the thicket, covered in dirt and leaves, triumphantly holding a large red flower. "YES!" he cried. "It's all here...and all we need is a stream—did anyone see a stream or a pond nearby?"

Inuyasha and Izayoi twitched their ears, listening. Izayoi pointed to her right. "Over there," she said, "I think I hear water over there," she said.

Shippou actually jumped into the air with glee. "Yes! I can do it, then!"

Inuyasha and Izayoi looked at each other cautiously. "Um... Po-chan..." began Izayoi carefully. "What _are_ you talking about?"

Shippou smiled. "I'm sorry—I should have explained right away. It's just been so long," he said. "When I was very little, before I met Inuyasha and Kagome… my people would hold a special celebration, the Festival of the Autumn Moon, but only in the years when all the ingredients were available to make a special drink: fox-berry wine. My grandmother was the only one in our family who knew how to make it, and I was the only one that she'd let help her with it. It took me quite a while to convince her to give me the recipe, and it took even longer to memorize it. It can only be made in the fall, and it takes a couple of weeks to make, and you have to finish it on the night of the full moon—and the ingredients are very hard to find. _Very_ hard to find. They almost never grow as near each other as they do here, and even when you _can_ find them, they're not always ripe at the right time. Sometimes you can go for years without everything ripening at the right time. But when you're lucky...it's just incredible. And well, for us fox youkai, it's something very special."

Shippou looked a little embarrassed. "I haven't talked about it much, because the chance never came up before," he said bashfully. "When I met you and Kagome, I was an orphan, and you took me into your family, and I honored your traditions. But even so, we don't celebrate the Festival of the Autumn Moon every year anyway: only when you can make the fox-berry wine, and that doesn't happen very often… But anyway, the ingredients are _all_ here, and they're _all_ ready to go, and here we are, and well... we just _have_ to do it. Can we stay here until the full moon? Can we? Please?"

"Sure, why not," shrugged Inuyasha. "It's not like we have anything _else_ to do."

"Dad!" Izayoi said with exasperation. "Of _course_ we'll stay here, Po-chan. Of _course_ we'll celebrate your festival. Nothing would make us happier. Right, Dad?" She glowered sternly at her father; it was so much like one of Kagome's expressions that Inuyasha jumped in terror.

"Sure, sure, of course, no problem, really!" he said breathlessly.

The recipe for fox-berry wine was unbelievably complicated. Shippou began by having everyone pick all the fox berries they could find. "Just the ripest ones!" he cautioned them. "If there's any green on them, or if they feel soft when you squeeze them, just leave them on the vine. And try not to bruise them!" The berries had to be peeled, mashed, strained, and then cooked slowly and carefully. Shippou stayed up all night cautiously tending the fire under the pot, making sure that it never got too hot or cold. The resulting mash was placed in a bag and hung in the sun to "mature," although after Inuyasha caught a whiff of it, he suggested that "rot" might be a better word. Then there were several kinds of flowers: some for their petals, some for their pollen, some for their buds, each requiring its own special care. And then there was a horrible smelly mess that Shippou created out of various bits of tree bark, forest mushrooms, dried leaves, and a black sticky substance that looked like mud but that Shippou said was the honey of a particularly noxious forest bee.

As the night of the full moon drew closer and the various piles and bags of ingredients grew taller, they began to notice that a lot of fox youkai were wandering through the area to pick flowers or berries, or to obtain some other missing ingredient. All of them greeted Shippou most warmly, and he could spend hours exchanging tips and tricks on the making of fox-berry wine or other festival treats. Some of them had even heard of his exploits and the great struggle with Naraku; Shippou always blushed, shook his head, and said bashfully, "I was just one of many who helped. Inuyasha was the _real _hero."

But nothing pleased him more than to meet a fox youkai who had actually known his family, and the compliment that pleased him most was "I knew your father—and he'd be very proud of you."

* * *

Soon it was the day before the night of the full moon, and preparations went into full swing for their festival. Shippou and Izayoi went into the forest with Izayoi's great black bow, and in short order they brought back a wild boar, which they butchered, trimmed, and tossed into a firepit to roast all day. It was Izayoi's "human" day; Inuyasha had been too full of his own grief to even notice Izayoi's human days earlier in their journey together—her days had fallen during the week that he had spent running alone ahead of the others, starting before dawn and stopping long after nightfall, and during one of his weeks of self-imposed seclusion in the high branches of a tall tree—and he was (he hoped) atoning for his earlier inattention by being especially solicitous of Izayoi's "weakened" state, which meant that he became obnoxiously jumpy every time Izayoi walked out of his sight. He scolded both Izayoi and Shippou for taking her condition too lightly—Shippou had puzzled Inuyasha by starting the day as he always did, by presenting Izayoi with a braided crown of white flowers to adorn her dark hair, and from Inuyasha's point of view, things had gone downhill from there. 

Inuyasha had quite forgotten that although Izayoi's youkai strength had fled for the day, she was far from defenseless. Her spiritual powers, which flowed from her human side, were unabated. Inuyasha was sitting with Izayoi by the stream as she peeled and washed vegetables, when there was a rustling in the thicket. Inuyasha drew Tessaiga, but Izayoi was faster. Her knife blazed brightly as she whirled towards the sound—and in a flash, her knife imbedded itself in a tree stump and burst meanacingly into purifying flame, inches away from the nose of a young fox youkai (scarcely larger than Shippou had been when he first met Inuyasha) who had been creeping stealthily towards their store for the evening's festival, hoping to help himself to their supplies.

"Get away from that, you little twerp!" barked Izayoi fiercely. "Go get your own!"

The little fox youkai yelped in terror and quickly disappeared into the forest. Izayoi retrieved her knife and resumed her seat next to Inuyasha by the stream. "Damned snot-nosed kids," grumbled Izayoi. "I _hate _kids."

"I guess I really _don't_ need to worry about you, do I?" laughed Inuyasha as he sheathed his sword. Then he muttered quietly to himself as he went back to work, "I also forgot how you've got your mother's temper—remind me never to get you angry."

Early that morning, Shippou had begun stirring all the ingredients together in a large pot that he had borrowed from a nearby village. By noon he had finished, and he tossed the last handful of flower petals into the pot with a joyful shout. "Done! At last! Now, we wait!" He rubbed his hands together with glee, then carefully covered the pot with a cloth. "This needs to stay covered until just the right time. If the cover comes off too soon, it'll be ruined, so no peeking! And that means _you_, Inuyasha," he said with a grin.

"Believe me—the way that smells, there's no way I'm even getting near it. Are you sure it's OK? Are we _really_ supposed to _drink _that?" He sniffed dubiously at the pot, and covered his nose with his sleeve with disgust.

"Trust me, Inuyasha," Shippou laughed. "It's fine. It's supposed to smell that way right now, but I promise you—it'll be wonderful. It may just be the best batch I've ever had!"

"Whatever you say, Shippou," said Inuyasha doubtfully, and he wandered off to sun himself by the bank of the stream.

Shippou and Izayoi spent the rest of the day getting the evening's feast ready, and then Shippou insisted that they take at least a little time to rest, so they spent the afternoon relaxing beside the stream, taking turns napping in the warm sun. When the sun was about to set, Shippou sprang back into action. He grabbed another large pot and waded into the stream. "From now on, timing is _very_ important. The water from the stream has to be collected just as the light of the moon hits it. The next step's even more important…but I'll tell you more in a minute."

Shippou watched the sun set with a smile, humming a little tune happily to himself; then he spun about and crouched down, so that his head was just above the surface of the water, his eyes never leaving the eastern horizon. The second he saw the moon peeking above the eastern mountains, he plunged the pot into the stream, quickly filling it to the brim. "Got it!" he said triumphantly, as he carefully handed the pot of water to Izayoi, who was waiting for it at the side of the stream. He shook himself dry, then he and Izayoi carried the pot of water back to the camp where Inuyasha was waiting for them, guarding the other pot—still covered, as Shippou had sternly reminded them.

Shippou invited them to join hands around the covered pot. "Before we continue, we must bless the ingredients," he said.

"Um…Shippou…I, er, I don't know how to do that," said Inuyasha, blushing and turning his eyes away.

"Just think about Mom," said Izayoi gently, "And wish for her to be happy, wherever she is. That'll be enough."

They bowed their heads and closed their eyes, and Shippou quietly said a blessing in the fox-youkai language. When they opened their eyes, smoke was pouring out from underneath the cover, and a dim red glow was clearly visible through the cloth.

"Uh oh," said Shippou. "I forgot about Izayoi's spiritual powers. Normally, we don't have someone like her around when we bless the pot. It's supposed to smoke a _little_, but I've never seen it smoke so much…oh well!" He threw up his hands and smiled. "It's gonna be what it's gonna be. Let's hope for the best!"

Shippou motioned Izayoi to assist him in hefting the water pot. "Now, everyone: this is the last step, and it's the trickiest one. The light of the moon and the water both have to hit the ingredients at the same time. Ready?" Izayoi and Inuyasha nodded. "OK…here we go…Pour! Uncover!"

Their timing was perfect. Inuyasha snatched the cover away just as the water came pouring in. There was a flash of liquid fire as the water hit the ingredients, and as soon as they had emptied the water pot, Shippou grabbed a spoon and began vigorously stirring. "Oh yes…oh yes…oh yes!" Shippou shouted happily and began dancing with delight. He took a taste from the spoon and smiled even more broadly. "It's perfect. It's _perfect_!"

Inuyasha sniffed the pot cautiously, and his eyes widened with amazement. "Hey…" he said, "This actually smells good!" He stuck in a finger and tasted it. "This TASTES good!"

"Inuyasha! Wait your turn!" Shippou laughed as he slapped Inuyasha's hand. "There's enough for everybody! But first, I have something to say." Shippou filled three cups and handed them around; then he held up his cup in salute. "My grandmother always said this before we began the festival…" His expression became solemn, but there was still a twinkle in his eye. "When you taste this…you taste the spirit of the fox-youkai people. We are here tonight in the company of the ones we love most, and we are alive: and we give thanks for every single moment. And so we say together: Love! Life! Joy!"

"Love! Life! Joy!" they all sang out, and they clinked their cups and drank deeply. And just as Inuyasha had said, the fox-berry wine tasted good; indeed, it was _very_ good. It had the smoky sweetness of figs, the rich sweetness of currants, and the bright sweetness of pomegranates. But it was not simply sweet; there was richness and complexity, with hints of fresh cedar, and spices, and charred oak. On the tongue it was as heavy and smooth as port wine, and its aroma was of fragrant flowers, but it cleared the palate like crisp autumn air clears and invigorates the mind. It was a deep, deep ruby red, like a living liquid jewel. And it did not dull the senses, but sharpened them; with each mouthful, everyone felt their minds become clearer, their senses keener. Their tongues were loosened, but with clear laughter and sweet song. Shippou grabbed Izayoi's hands and began to dance her around the wine pot; and after a few rounds, he grabbed Inuyasha's hands and began to dance with him. Inuyasha's expression was utter bewilderment—no one had ever swept him into a dance before, not even Kagome—but to his amazement, he found himself laughing and dancing merrily with Shippou before he even realized that he was doing so. And Izayoi took her father with one hand and Shippou with the other, and the three of them danced and sang merrily under the full moon.

They drank deeply of Shippou's excellent fox-berry wine, and they tucked into their feast with great enthusiasm. Inuyasha lustily devoured half of the roast boar before either of the others had finished their portion, and they gorged themselves on roasted apples and other forest fruits, and they sat around the fire and drank the wine and sang songs and told stories long into the night.

* * *

The fire was burning low and the moon was beginning to sink slowly into the western half of the sky. Inuyasha threw a few more logs onto the fire and dipped himself another cup of Shippou's wine from the pot, and was just about to resume his seat when he noticed Izayoi and Shippou nuzzling each other, whispering secretively into each other's ears, giving each other long significant looks, and giggling softly. "Y'know," he said, "I think I need to get some water. I'm going to take a walk down to the stream for a few minutes. You two going to be alright while I'm gone?" 

"No problem," said Shippou distantly, nuzzling Izayoi's neck.

"We'll be fine, Dad. Take your time," said Izayoi, giggling as she half-heartedly pushed Shippou away.

Inuyasha picked up his cup of wine and strode boldly out of camp, whistling all the way to the stream. He picked his way to a rock that jutted into the stream, sat down, and sipped his wine as he looked at the moon. He was thinking of Kagome, and fondly remembering nights of romance and passion under the stars, when he heard a rustling in the reeds. He set down his cup and rested his hand on his sword, but relaxed when he saw the source of the noise: a mother otter youkai, taking her pups out for a late-night snack and a swim. He smiled as he watched the pups splashing and playing in the stream before him, trying to catch something to eat. The pups' mother made her way towards Inuyasha and greeted him cordially.

"Nice night tonight, isn't it? There's nothing like the full autumn moon," she said, looking into the sky.

"No…there's nothing like it," agreed Inuyasha.

"It has such memories for me," she said wistfully. "Such wonderful, wonderful nights, spent in strong arms, with someone who always kept me so wonderfully warm," she sighed. "Young love…there's nothing like it, is there?" Inuyasha nodded in agreement. "But those warm arms are gone, and those wonderful nights are gone ... but life goes on. Life always goes on… and life is good." She nodded towards the pups. "And with the little ones," she laughed, "Life is always full of surprises."

"I'll say. Tell me about it," laughed Inuyasha.

"You have children?" the otter youkai asked him.

"Just one, my daughter," said Inuyasha.

"How old is she?" the otter youkai asked.

"Oh, she's all grown up. I've been traveling a while with her and her…well," said Inuyasha quizzically, scratching his head, "I'm not exactly sure _what_ to call _him_." The otter youkai laughed. "Well, I've been traveling with _them_, anyway."

"Any grandchildren?" she asked.

"Not yet," said Inuyasha, "Although if things keep going the way they were going earlier tonight," he said as he cocked an eyebrow and nodded backwards over his shoulder, "I wouldn't be surprised if they came along earlier than either of them expected."

The otter youkai's eyes grew very large, and she put both paws over her mouth and her cheeks blushed a bright pink; then she began to laugh, and Inuyasha joined in as well. "Young love," she said with a grin. "Were _we_ ever so silly? Certainly _not!_" She elbowed Inuyasha gently, and they laughed again. She clapped her paws and her children obediently swam towards her, each with a fish in its mouth. She smiled sweetly at Inuyasha and warmly bid him good night, and she and her pups disappeared into the rushes at the side of the stream.

"Young love," Inuyasha laughed to himself. "Well, I guess I've been gone long enough…that is, I _hope_ I've been gone long enough," he muttered as he headed back towards the camp.

Inuyasha was already blushing hotly in anticipation of what he might interrupt upon his return, but fortunately, he had indeed waited long enough. When he returned to their camp, Izayoi and Shippou were blissfully asleep in each other's arms, the same way that they had spent every night together since they were children. Tonight was a little different, though; Izayoi's hair was quite disheveled, clothing was strewn all about the camp, and the smiles that always wreathed their faces as they slept were unusually satisfied. But fortunately, one of them had had the presence of mind to pull Izayoi's kimono over themselves before they fell asleep, so everything that needed covering was (pretty much) sufficiently covered by the time Inuyasha returned.

"A father's work is never done," muttered Inuyasha as he gathered and folded their various garments, and he spread a blanket over the two of them, just as he had done innumerable times when they were both still children. Then he went to the wine pot, and poured the dregs into his cup for a nightcap. He tossed a couple more logs onto the fire, and leaned against a tree, Tessaiga over his shoulder, nursing his wine and staring into the fire.

Inuyasha was not one normally given to deep thoughts; perhaps it was the influence of the fox-berry wine. But as he sat by the fire, he quietly marveled at his daughter, created by his and Kagome's love for each other and given flesh by Kagome's own nurturing body; and now here Izayoi lay, asleep beside her own chosen beloved, having just given herself to her lover in the great and sacred dance of creation that had brought her own life into being. "Life does go on, doesn't it," he chuckled quietly to himself as he sipped his wine.

A soft wind arose, shimmering the leaves of the trees; and Inuyasha heard Kagome's voice on the wind, whispering gently to him. "Yes, my love," said her soothing voice. "Life always goes on... and love lights the way."

"Kagome," he whispered lovingly. Then, he began to laugh, remembering Kagome's constant worries about the "propriety" of Izayoi's childhood experiences in the feudal era, or the dangers of exposing her young daughter to "questionable influences" like Miroku. "Oh, Izayoi, my sweet little princess," he chuckled, "What _would _your mother say if she saw you right now?" Then he remembered the day that Izayoi had stumbled upon Souta's oldest girl and some boy in the storage shed behind the temple, accidentally interrupting a session of seriously heavy necking, and how Izayoi had chased the pair into the courtyard with a truly withering tongue-lashing on the topic of the "propriety" of their behavior. "What will _you_ say when you catch _your_ daughter doing this?" he guffawed; and he began laughing out loud and slapping his thigh with glee.

"Are you OK, Daddy?" Izayoi's voice interrupted his reverie, and Inuyasha saw Izayoi's face turned towards him, her dark eyes boring into his.

"I'm just fine, princess. Everything is just fine. Life goes on, after all," he laughed.

"Whatever you say, Daddy," Izayoi said, closing her eyes and settling back into sleep.

"Life goes on," Inuyasha said quietly to himself. Then, looking into the sky, he said softly, "And thank you, Kagome, for lighting my way." Inuyasha settled himself against the tree and closed his eyes, and he let his spirit float upon Kagome's sweet voice in the wind, as she gently sang him to sleep with the soft whispering of the leaves.


	5. The Shrine

**Death and Transfiguration**

* * *

The Shrine

* * *

The day after the full moon dawned bright, brisk, and clear, and everyone awoke remarkably refreshed despite the previous night's revelries. The euphoria of Shippou's fox-berry wine had faded, but its clarity and good cheer remained with them for many days afterwards. 

Inuyasha awakened first, and he whistled merrily as he went to off the stream to catch their morning's breakfast. When he returned to the campsite, Izayoi and Shippou were awake and had recovered their clothing (and most of their dignity), but they still giggled and exchanged many a significant glance as they tidied the camp.

Inuyasha had enough tact not to mention certain of the evening's events, but they laughed as they talked about the fun of their autumn-moon festival. Suddenly Izayoi said, "Hey Dad—isn't it about the time of year that we go to Uncle Sesshomaru's shrine?"

"Uncle Sesshomaru? _Uncle _Sesshomaru?" said Shippou. "Just the thought of calling him by that name makes me shudder. I haven't seen him in years."

"Izayoi's the only one who calls him that," laughed Inuyasha. "But she's safe—he's long gone, and so is Rin, and that little toad Jaken too."

"Oh…he's dead then," said Shippou, a little sheepishly. "I know you two never got along, Inuyasha, but…I'm sorry."

"Who said he was dead?" said Inuyasha. "I said he was gone. At least, that's the story that Jaken told me. Gone with Rin, too."

"I don't get it," said Shippou.

"It's a long story, good for a long trip," laughed Izayoi. "I'll tell you on the way." (And that story is told in full in _The Tale of Rin and Sesshomaru_.) And it was indeed a long trip, requiring several days of flight on Shippou's back, and several more days of Inuyasha and Izayoi running when Shippou grew tired of carrying them.

In time, they arrived at their destination: a lovely and peaceful canyon, through which a clear and sparkling river flowed. At the bend of the river arose a small hill, ringed with dull gray glass, as though the earth itself had been melted by some supernal force (which, in truth, it had). But the hill that arose from that dull and glassy moat was bursting with life: rich and verdant grasses, lush flowering bushes, and strong saplings. At the top of the hill was a beautiful spreading tree, and the grass underneath the tree was as soft and smooth as velvet.

A charming path wound its way from the stream to the top of the hill; and when they had made their way to the top of the hill and stood underneath the tree at its summit, the secret of the hill's beauty was revealed: the entire hill had been made into a garden, which had been meant to be viewed from underneath the tree. It had not been tended in quite some time, and what had clearly once been neat beds and neatly trimmed bushes were now overgrown with weeds; but even with nature intruding itself over the years, the little garden hill was still quite stunning.

"How…who…?" Shippou was struck speechless by the little hill's beauty.

"It was Jaken—who'd have thought he was a gardener?" said Inuyasha. "He and Rin lived here for years. It's been getting a little run-down since he left, but it still looks pretty good, doesn't it?"

"Is it … OK for us to be here?" Shippou whispered.

"Sure!" said Izayoi. "Mom was Rin's best friend, and we all got along great. We were always welcome when we visited her here. I'm sure she'd be glad for us to be here."

"Well, we didn't come this far just to admire the view," said Inuyasha. "This way."

He led Izayoi and Shippou around the tree to a pair of wooden shrines. One was small and square; the other was short, but quite wide. "This is what we came for," said Inuyasha. "Wait here—I'll be right back." He turned and walked away, leaving Izayoi and Shippou at the shrines.

"What are these?" asked Shippou.

"The small one is what we really came here to visit—it's a shrine for both Rin and Sesshomaru. The big one holds Rin's sword—but there's a nasty barrier around it, so don't even try to touch it. It won't even let my dad open the doors, but Mom could open it and she showed it to me once—but even she didn't like to touch it. Let me see..."

Izayoi carefully extended her hand towards the shrine's door, then she gingerly grasped the handle. "Well...it doesn't seem to mind me. Dad can't even do this much." She opened the doors to reveal a long and very powerful-looking sword, which seemed to glow faintly with a light of its own. "It's let me come this far... I wonder if I can..." she reached her hand towards the hilt, but then stopped suddenly. "Huh—I can hear its voice in my mind. The sword says, 'Not yet.' I wonder what that means..."

Shippou hadn't really been paying attention; he had been absently dragging his toes in a circle on the ground, trying to get up his courage to say something. "Za-chan..." he said timidly; then, standing up tall and straight, he swallowed, took a deep breath, and took her hands between his.

"Za-chan," he said, "This is the most beautiful place I've ever seen in my life. You are the most beautiful woman I've ever seen in my life. If I could, I would spend the rest of my days, right here, with you..." He swallowed again, took a moment to gather his courage, and continued, "My heart tells me that we have a lot to do before we can settle down...but when the time is right, and we're ready...will you return here, and live with me...and... and... and bear my children?"

Izayoi turned beet red. "Oh...Po-chan..." she said faintly, and her voice broke as she spoke. She turned her face away for a moment, then she turned towards him, her dark eyes sparkling.

She was just opening her mouth to reply when Inuyasha suddenly returned, bearing a handful of fresh flowers. "Bear my children?" he said rudely. "Keh! I thought you had more class than _that_, Shippou. You've been hanging around too much with that perverted monk. If that's the best you can do, you don't deserve my daughter."

Shippou turned pink, then purple. "Oh...oh no..." he stuttered, "Oh no, Izayoi, I didn't mean that, I swear I didn't mean it that way...I mean, I really DID mean it, I meant every word...I mean, I...I..."

"Hush, Po-chan." Izayoi smiled and gently laid two fingers across Shippou's lips. "I know exactly what you meant." She tenderly took his face in her hands, looked into his eyes, and she said, "And yes...I will." She kissed him, passionately; and then they embraced, beautiful smiles beaming from their faces.

Inuyasha watched them for a few moments, until he realized that he was smiling just as broadly as Shippou and his daughter; then he cleared his throat loudly and coughed a few times, until they got the idea that he was still there and they released each other. "Well, now that that's all settled," he laughed, "Can we do what we came here to do?"

The three of them knelt before Rin and Sesshomaru's shrine, and Izayoi clapped twice and bowed before it. Inuyasha sat silently for a few moments, then solemnly placed his flowers before the shrine. They sat in silence for a few more moments; Izayoi put one arm around Inuyasha and rested her head on his shoulder, and Shippou grasped his other shoulder reassuringly. Inuyasha smiled at them, and said quietly, "There's no other way to say it. Sesshomaru was a real jerk. But...he was my brother, y'know?"

"I know," agreed Shippou.

They sat before the shrine, lost in their thoughts; then, suddenly, Izayoi said quietly, "Something's wrong. Something's _very_ wrong."

"Yeah...even I feel it," said Shippou. Inuyasha just growled meanacingly.

Something was happening to the sunlight around them. There was barely a cloud in the sky, but it seemed like something was sucking the life out of the very sunlight itself. The world around them was gradually becoming dim and colorless, and they felt their spirits falling as the light around them faded.

"Even Naraku wasn't this evil," said Shippou, clutching at his heart. "What could be doing this?"

Izayoi saw it first. "That," she said grimly.

At first, they thought it was simply a cloud of evil mist, thick, dark, and oily; but then, it congealed into a hideous monstrosity. It was a writhing tangle of evil youkai of every description: insects, lizards, ogres, multi-tentacled horrors with no name; it was a ball of evil, with limbs and eyes and heads and mouths facing in every direction. It could see in every direction, move in every direction, and its mouths opened greedily in every direction.

The largest head, a one-eyed alligator with vicious teeth, oozed to the top of the creature's body and spoke with a chilling, cruel voice. "We are Legion," it croaked. "We have come for the sword, to add its power to our own. Many of us have tried and failed; but it cannot hold us back united. Together, we will make it ours."

"Look," said Inuyasha angrily, "My brother was a jerk, but he was _my_ brother, and that was _his_ sword, and you're gonna have to go through _me _to get it."

Legion laughed. "A hanyou, a fox youkai, and a halfbreed woman. You think you can stand in our way." It snarled, "You are wrong. You will join us."

From out of Legion's body there arose a harpy's head; it had a cruel beak, covered in dried blood. It opened its mouth, and a hideous voice began croaking a horrible song in a vicious, evil language.

At the sound of the harpy's voice, an intense pain shot through Izayoi's head, and she covered her ears vainly as she tried to stop the sound. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that Shippou and Inuyasha were affected the same way, collapsing to their knees, their hands over their ears. Something about the harpy's song was making Izayoi's demon blood boil, and she felt an overwhelming urge to plunge herself directly into the body of Legion and merge with the beast. It took every ounce of her miko's strength to master her youkai blood, calming and controlling it until she was fully herself again, and fully in control.

She opened her eyes, and saw that Inuyasha and Shippou were still in the thrall of the harpy's song. Their eyes were glowing red, and they were panting and sweating, exerting every ounce of their remaining willpower to keep themselves under control.

Shippou managed to speak. "I... za...yoi," he said with great difficulty, fighting to get out every syllable "Can't...hold...out... save... yourself..."

Izayoi rested one hand on Inuyasha's shoulder, and one on Shippou's. "I will never leave you. Never," she said calmly.

Legion's alligator head laughed again. "Good... good. Ours soon. All ours. First you...then the sword." It nodded towards the harpy. "Finish them."

But a new song was in the air; it was Izayoi, still with one hand on her father and one hand on her lover, lifting her own voice in sweet music. It was the lullaby that her mother used to sing her when she was just a baby; and as she sang, a gentle rose glow arose from her and gradually spread to Inuyasha and Shippou.

Legion roared in anger, and the harpy took a breath and began to sing louder; but Izayoi calmly continued her song, and the purifying glow grew ever brighter.

And then it seemed that another voice joined in harmony with Izayoi's. It seemed to come from the air itself: a woman's voice, sweet and clear as a flute, gentle as the morning light, beautiful beyond the music of this world, so lovely that the harpy ceased its song and hung its head in shame. As the new voice joined Izayoi's song, gentle sparkling lights began to fall from the heavens like cherry blossoms falling on the wind. A golden glow suffused Inuyasha, Izayoi, and Shippou, and as the light glowed ever brighter, it seemed to bring with it the color that had been stolen from the world. Soon the sun was beaming brightly again, and the world was filled once again with the beautiful colors of the peaceful garden hill.

Inuyasha struggled to speak. "Ka...Kagome?" he said haltingly; and the demonic fire left his eyes, and he mastered himself, and rose from his knees to stand tall and strong again. Shippou too had come back to himself, and he was staring at Legion with unabashed hatred.

Izayoi finished her song; and she looked into the heavens and said quietly, "Thank you, Mom."

In the sudden silence, Legion roared in anger, and the harpy opened its mouth again; but this time, it was Izayoi's great black bow that sang out, and an arrow flew straight down the harpy's gullet, choking it before it could utter another sound.

With an angry shout, Shippou hurled a ball of foxfire straight into the harpy's open mouth. The harpy gave a strangled cry, and its head exploded in a flash of blue flame.

Shippou stood glaring furiously at Legion, clenching and unclenching his fists. "You...you _bastard_," he said through clenched teeth, "Nobody has _ever_ done that to me before." He stretched forth his hand, and a pikestaff of solid foxfire flamed into being. He pointed the weapon meanacingly at Legion, and growled, "I will _never_ forgive you."

Inuyasha smiled. "You don't know who you're up against. But I promise you," he said as he drew Tessaiga and an ominous crystalline glitter flashed along its blade, "You won't have to wonder for long."

With a great cry, Inuyasha swung Tessaiga at Legion, and a hail of deadly kongouseki flew at the beast. The diamond spears struck Legion dead center, and all of its heads screamed in pain. Inuyasha spun, and with another stroke, he blasted the creature with the kaze no kizu. Shippou began hurling spears of solid foxfire; those few that did not strike their target set the very ground ablaze where they landed. And then Izayoi's terrifying _kiai_ resounded throughout the canyon, and she loosed a purifying arrow of terrible power, which burned with a blinding light and roared like an angry rocket. The arrow struck Legion dead center, and the creature exploded. Bits of its body flew in every direction, burning with purifying energy and foxfire.

"That...was too easy," said Inuyasha suspiciously, as he looked around at the debris still raining down slowly from above.

"We got him!" shouted Shippou triumphantly.

"No," said Izayoi, her eyes narrowing angrily, "No. We didn't. It's not over yet."

She was right. The gory pieces of the creature that littered the ground all around them began to twitch and gather themselves together, collecting and recoagulating into the beast that they thought they had destroyed. In just a few moments, it had reformed, as ugly and as malevolent as ever.

"It looks...the same," said Shippou.

"Yes," said Izayoi. "The same...but different."

Again, she was right. Legion was still very much a hideous conglomeration of youkai, but there was something different about it—as though the creature had reassembled itself out of different parts.

An ugly blister formed at the top of Legion's bulk, and when it burst, the alligator's head emerged, shaking itself clean of blood and ichor. It laughed cruelly. "You don't know who _you_ are dealing with," is gloated. "We are _Legion_—we are many. One of us, you might defeat, but you will never be able to best us all."

"Yeah," said Shippou angrily, "Maybe so—but we sure can try!" Blue flame flashed from his hands, taking the shape of a sword, and he ran at the creature and began hacking viciously at the first head he could reach.

"Shippou—no!" shouted Inuyasha. "This guy's way out of your league. Get back—he's mine!" Inuyasha leaped over the creature, and as he flew past he swung Tessaiga, slicing at limbs, heads, eyes—anything he could reach. Izayoi shot it with arrow after arrow, destroying anything that looked vital or sensitive.

But despite their successes, and the screams of the creature in pain, it was no good. Each time a limb or a head was chopped off, a new one—often from a totally different youkai—would grow back.

Inuyasha and Shippou withdrew to Izayoi's position to catch their breath. "There's no end to them, is there?" panted Shippou. "We can get rid of any part of it, but whatever's at the heart of that thing, we can't get at it. It just grows back too fast."

Legion was laughing again. "Tired already?" the alligator's said, grinning toothily. "Then maybe we'd better give you an excuse to rest!" From the top of Legion's body, right next to the alligator's head, there emerged a huge centipede's head. Its three eyes glared at Izayoi, and then it opened its mouth and vomited a spray of poison, directly at her.

Shippou tried to pull Izayoi out of the way, but Inuyasha was faster. He hurled himself directly into the toxic stream, shielding Izayoi and Shippou from it with his own body. Even his red robe could not fully protect him from the poisonous blast, and Izayoi and Shippou shivered as they heard Inuyasha scream in pain, and their stomachs wrenched at the horrible scent of his skin and hair burning.

Legion laughed cruelly. "Oh, the pretty puppy got all burned. We'll have to try harder next time."

The centipede drew its head back to deliver another deadly blast, but its head suddenly split open with a sapphire flash—Shippou had formed a whirling blade out of solidified foxfire, and had hurled it directly at the creature's head, neatly cleaving it in half. The centipede writhed in agony, and its poison oozed out of its split head onto Legion itself, and every part of the creature that it flowed onto screamed and died at its touch. One of Legion's larger arms ripped a tree out of the ground, and using it as a club, beat at the centipede's head until it finally lay still.

"Yeah, you're right," said Shippou, panting from exertion, "You'll have to try harder next time."

"You bastards!" screamed the alligator's head. "We're not finished with you yet." Two long tentacles thrust out from Legion's body, wrapped themselves around one of Inuyasha's legs, and ripped him from Izayoi's arms, where she had been desperately trying to soothe his pain. The tentacles whipped Inuyasha through the air, and slammed him time and again into the ground like a rag doll. With each blow, Inuyasha's yelps of pain grew softer and softer, until unconsciousness finally came over him.

"Well, well, well, so it's finally over," gloated the alligator. Izayoi's shout of anger and grief only made it laugh harder. "I told you that you'd join us...and if we can't add your power to ours, we'll be more than happy to make your body part of ours." It smacked its lips hungrily. "Now...who shall have the honor of consuming this hanyou?"

All the heads and mouths began clamoring for the honor of eating Inuyasha. While the creature was debating with itself, Shippou drew Izayoi aside. "Za-chan...there's still hope. He's still alive, Za-chan." He shook her shoulders gently. "_He's still alive._ You've got to believe me. There's still hope." Izayoi blinked away her angry tears and nodded. "Now...the first thing to do is get him away from that thing. Any ideas?"

Izayoi wasn't listening to Shippou; she was looking towards the shrine of the sword. "It...it's calling to me," she said distantly.

"What?" said Shippou. "I don't hear anything."

"I do...the sword...it's calling to me. It says, 'Now.'" Her miko's senses saw the barrier around the shrine open to her. "I've got to go _now,_" she said insistently. "This may be my only chance."

"OK, if you think that's what'll help Inuyasha," Shippou said doubtfully, but then he smiled. "I trust you. I'll get the thing's attention." Shippou reached into his vest and pulled out a handful of leaves, which he threw towards the creature. There was a barrage of loud pops, and there suddenly appeared at least a dozen Shippous, each hurling foxfire and insults at Legion.

"Now, while I've got its attention—go. Go _now!_" Shippou gently pushed Izayoi towards the shrine; she nodded and made for the shrine as fast as she could run.

She dashed into the opening in the barrier, and she felt it close behind her. She knelt before the shrine, and opened the doors all the way. The sword lay before her, pulsing gently, glowing with its own light. She hesitated a moment—she had heard many stories about what had happened to those who had tried even to touch the sword uninvited—but then she squared her shoulders, and said to herself, "I don't care. I've got to save Dad," and without another thought, she grasped the hilt of the sword. There was a blinding flash, and a deafening bang, and suddenly everything went black and silent.


	6. The Sword

**Death and Transfiguration**

* * *

The Sword

* * *

Izayoi looked around. She hadn't blacked out—she was standing in a perfectly black space. She could see herself, and she could feel her own skin and clothing, but there was nothing else to see anywhere—except the great sword, hanging suspended in space about ten feet away from her, floating in a pool of light. 

She strode towards the sword, but her way was suddenly blocked by two figures: one tall, one small, like a child. The tall one was the first to step from the shadows; he was a dog youkai with long white hair and a violet crescent moon on his forehead. He had cold golden eyes, and a cruel smile.

"So, little half-hanyou... so you have come for the sword." His voice was deep, his words brusque, and scorn dripped from every syllable. "My power, and my father's power, are not for such filth as you. If you want to live, leave. Now."

Izayoi tried to step around him, but he blocked her every move. She growled and slashed at his face with her claws, but he evaded her blow easily. He snorted cruelly. "It seems that my brother's whelp is hardly better than my brother." Faster than she had ever seen anyone move, the youkai shot his hand forward, and he grabbed Izayoi by the neck and lifted her off the ground. Izayoi's face contorted with pain and fear, and she writhed and flailed at her attacker uselessly, trying in vain to free herself from his iron grip.

The youkai gloated at Izayoi's distress. "_This _thought it was worthy of my father's power," he sneered. He drew Izayoi's face close to his, and said malevolently, "Is it worth your life to win his power?"

Suddenly his eyes widened in shock and amazement. Izayoi had charged her right hand with purifying energy and had made it insubstantial, plunging it into the chest of her attacker. Although he still had her by the throat, her hand was now around his beating heart. Her fear and pain had been a sham; her dark eyes bored fearlessly, unblinkingly, into his.

"My life is worth _nothing_. I would give it, gladly, in an instant, to save my father," she growled. "Is it worth _your_ life to try and stop me?"

The youkai snorted, and smiled mysteriously. He released Izayoi, and vanished. Izayoi blinked in amazement, but only for a moment; then she resumed her purposeful stride towards the sword. She felt a tug on her kimono; she whirled angrily, her claws blazing, but she slashed only air. She looked down, and saw a small child in an orange and yellow kimono: the girl had a somber but kind face, and large dark eyes.

Izayoi knelt to speak to the child. The little girl said, "To wield my father's sword is to be forever changed. Once you set your foot upon that path, you can never go back. Your old life will be no more. Is that what you really want?"

Izayoi gently stroked the little girl's cheek. "What I want is to save my father. Nothing else matters. Wouldn't you do anything..._anything_...to save _your_ father's life if you could?"

The little girl just smiled sadly, kissed Izayoi gently on the cheek, and vanished. Izayoi stood, and strode again towards the sword. She stepped into the circle of light in which the sword was floating, and heard a new voice, which she recognized as the voice of the sword itself. "After so long... the one who is worthy... the one I have been waiting for... has finally come."

The sword floated towards Izayoi, and it slowly spun until the hilt faced her. The voice spoke again: "Child of courage, child of light... if this be truly your will... receive now your birthright." Izayoi gulped once, and then firmly grasped the hilt of the sword.

She was totally unprepared for what happened next. Tongues of living fire coursed backwards from the blade of the sword, leaping across the hilt to run up her arm, and from there growing to envelop her entire body. She was blinded and deafened all at once, and it felt like every cell in her body had exploded in mystical fire. The pain was excruciating, so great that she could not even draw breath to scream. It felt like her body and soul were being burned, purified, forged, remade into something completely new. Delicious oblivion lapped at the edges of her consciousness, the darkness offering her an end to the horrible pain—but she refused it, embracing the pain, clinging to the thought of her father, panting through clenched teeth, "For Dad... for Dad... for Dad..."

After what seemed like a lifetime of agony, the pain roared in a final blazing crescendo, and everything went not black, but white; and when Izayoi's vision cleared, she was kneeling before the shrine. The barrier was gone, but her hand firmly grasped the hilt of the great sword, and the pulse of its power was now the pulse of her own heart.

She turned back to the battle; it had seemed like a lifetime, but only a scant two minutes had passed between the moment that she grasped the sword-hilt and that her vision had cleared. Shippou's phantom selves had all been defeated, and the real Shippou was using a rock for a sheld, sticking his head over the top from time to time to hurl a ball of foxfire at Legion, but with little effect. Legion's tentacles were holding Inuyasha spread-eagled in the air a few feet above the ground. The alligator's head was laughing cruelly and licking its chops with hungry anticipation. An ogre's arm brandished a great club, and it was raising the club to deliver what was clearly intended to be the death blow.

"No! NO! NOOOO!" Izayoi screamed, and she leaped into the air; and as she jumped, her scream became a roar that shook the earth, and she felt her limbs stretching, her body growing and reshaping itself, her hair streaming about her like living flame.

Izayoi's shout pierced the darkness in which Inuyasha felt himself floating, and he struggled to open his eyes, hoping to see his daughter one last time before he died. Instead, he saw Legion before him, gloating no more, looking in terror at some great shape that had blotted out the sun. And suddenly, Inuyasha saw a huge white dog come hurtling out of the heavens, its vicious jaws clamping hard on the alligator's throat. Legion dropped Inuyasha as it screamed in terror, and Shippou raced across the field to where Inuyasha had fallen, scooped him up, and quickly carried him out of harm's way.

The great dog and Legion tumbled and rolled, but the dog was quickly the victor. It rolled to its feet with Legion like a rag doll in its mouth, and with a cruel snap it wrenched the alligator's head off Legion's body and viciously spat it out. The body flew in the opposite direction, where it hit the canyon wall and fell quivering to the ground.

A flash, and the dog shrank to human size; it was indeed Izayoi. She drew the great sword, and lightning flashed from the heavens, finding the blade and kindling a blazing fire within it. "Die, you bastard!" Izayoi shrieked, and she swung the flaming blade at Legion. A bolt of living blue-green demonic energy coursed from the sword to strike the quivering body of Legion; but then, twin tongues of pink purifying fire corkscrewed along the bolt of demon energy, racing towards their target. Together, the otherworldly fire of the sword's youkai power and the searing purifying flames of Izayoi's human power did what neither force could do alone—they tore into Legion, shredding and purifying its hideous body in a furious, blazing maelstrom; and in moments, Legion was utterly destroyed.

Izayoi walked over to the alligator's head, the last remaining piece of Legion, where it lay in the mud, gasping and choking. "You... may have won... today," it wheezed, "But... you can never defeat us all. One day... we will destroy you."

"One day. Maybe," said Izayoi coldly; and there was a wet crunch as she drove the sword with brute strength through the creature's skull, and a soft sizzle as she vaporized it with a flash of purifying energy. She stared at the stain on the ground where the evil head had laid, and she said quietly, "But not today."

"Za-chan!" called Shippou; and Izayoi ran to Inuyasha, where he lay limp in Shippou's arms. Shippou was unable to speak, and tears were pouring down his face.

"Oh... oh no..." Izayoi gasped. Her vision blurred as her eyes filled with tears, but then she wiped her eyes and mastered herself, and she reached for Tenseiga, still sheathed at her father's belt.

She grasped Tenseiga's hilt, and she was about to draw it when Inuyasha's hand gently closed around her wrist. "We don't need that... just yet," he wheezed.

"Oh, Daddy..." Izayoi cried, and she fell across her father's chest, sobbing with relief.

"Did we... get him?" coughed Inuyasha.

"We got him," said Shippou, gently wiping the pink foam from Inuyasha's lips. "Izayoi's the one who got him."

"That's...my girl," he said softly, and he sighed and lay back in Shippou's arms, his body relaxing.

"Daddy...no, Daddy, no!" screamed Izayoi; but as she pressed her ear against his chest, she could hear his heart beat.

"He's still with us, Za-chan," said Shippou gently. "He's tough. He'll be fine."

* * *

The sun was setting and the air was growing chill as they carefully carried Inuyasha back to the top of the hill and washed and bandaged his wounds. They bundled him into their warmest blankets, and they set him as close to the fire as they dared. As they worked, Izayoi told Shippou the story of what had happened with the sword. He shook his head with amazement. "When this is all over," Shippou said, "Let's take it to Totosai—maybe he can figure out what's going on. It's all beyond me." 

"Me too," said Izayoi. She drew the sword and looked cautiously at the blade. "And I've got the feeling that what happened today is only the beginning... of what, I don't know."

The autumn wind blew colder as night fell, and Inuyasha began to shiver, even under his blankets. Shippou took Inuyasha in his arms and wrapped the blankets around the both of them, trying to warm Inuyasha with the heat of his own body; but it wasn't working. As the night grew colder so did Inuyasha, and his face began to turn a disturbing shade of gray.

"We've got to keep him warm," said Shippou worriedly. "If we can't keep him warm, he won't live through the night. Maybe if we put one of us on each side, and wrap us all in blankets... but I don't know if even that will be enough."

"I know what to do," said Izayoi. She got up from the campfire and walked a short distance away. Then, she hurled herself into the air, and as she flew upwards she transformed, her body stretching and growing until she transformed into a great youkai dog.

"Neat trick, Za-chan," laughed Shippou. Izayoi snarled quietly, her lips curling back slightly to reveal large and fearsome fangs; then she lay on the ground and Shippou tucked Inuyasha under her great chest. Izayoi gently nuzzled Inuyasha, and Inuyasha stirred, rubbing his face against Izayoi's soft fur, and he rested himself against her the way a puppy warms itself against its mother.

"Princess," Inuyasha said quietly, "That..._is_ you, isn't it."

Her great sad eyes looked gently at her father, and he heard her thoughts in his mind: "Yes, Daddy...it's me."

"On you...it looks good," he said smiling, and he contentedly rested his head against Izayoi's great chest, and he quickly fell asleep.

* * *

Inuyasha survived the night. In the morning, they were glad to see that the pallor had left his face, and his breath came quietly and easily. 

The morning was bright and warm, and Shippou carried Inuyasha onto the soft grass to lie in the sun. Izayoi resumed her human form and went to the river to wash; she felt like she still stank from the blood of yesterday's battle. When she returned, she found Shippou laying stones out on the ground, then rearranging them; then forming a frame with his hands and squinting thoughtfully through it at the landscape.

"Po-chan," she laughed, "What _are_ you doing?"

"Za-chan, I've got to admit it—one of the best things humans ever invented was houses. My people live in holes in the ground—now, they're very cozy and nothing feels like 'home' like a good burrow—but I think humans have got it right, so we're going to build a house."

Izayoi giggled as Shippou made grand gestures and pointed to various piles of stones. "The door goes here—and there's plenty of room to expand this way as our family gets bigger. And your bath—you've _got_ to have a bath," he said emphatically, and Izayoi nodded enthusiastically, "Your bath goes _here_, because it's got the best view of the canyon that way."

"Po-chan," Izayoi laughed, "You don't have the _slightest_ idea how to build _anything_, do you?"

Shippou blushed. "Za-chan! How _can _you doubt me! I'm crushed!" Shippou turned up his nose, looking very unjustly aggrieved. "Of course I... don't," he said, digging his toe into the earth. "But if humans can do it...there's no reason a fox youkai can't!" He proudly thumped his chest. "Besides, look at what we did yesterday! That's got to be harder than building some old house."

"Good point," Izayoi laughed. "We can start as soon as you find giant-dog-sized tools."

"Oh yeah," said Shippou sheepishly.

Then Izayoi drew her sword and brandished it meanacingly. She said darkly, "And if you _ever_ ... say anything about a '_doghouse_'..." The sword flashed eerily, and Izayoi growled, "I'll _never_ forgive you."

Shippou looked hurt. "Za-chan..." he said, hanging his head; then he began to laugh, and so did she, and their laughter echoed up and down the canyon.

* * *

Autumn steadily chilled into winter. The days and nights grew colder, but the harsh canyon winds blew around rather than over the little hill, and there was excellent shelter within a copse of young trees just off the crest of the hill. It was indeed quite a cozy place to live, and Shippou and Izayoi both began to dream of days and nights together there, making the little hill a place for home and family. 

Inuyasha was not healing as fast as he usually did. He slept more than he usually did, even when healing from battle wounds, and he ate considerably less than usual. His breathing could sometimes be a little difficult, he still needed to use Tessaiga as a crutch, and he was clearly not his normal self. "It's my damned weak human side," he groused. "After a few hundred years, it just starts to give out on you." Izayoi had made him healing herbal medicines, which he (usually) drank, but even her best care couldn't seem to make him better.

But even so, all three of them were quite content living on the little hill; but Izayoi worried about her father's health, and she would often stay up late watching him sleep, or pace around the camp, or speak long into the night with Shippou about what to do.

One night, Izayoi could not sleep at all. She left Shippou snoring contentedly by the fire at their corner of the camp, and she walked quietly to where her father lay; he too was asleep. She paced aimlessly around the fire for a few minutes, then she shoved her sword into her belt and padded quietly away, with no particular destination in mind.

She found herself at the foot of the hill, at the side of the stream. She knelt down to drink from the cold sweet water, and for a while looked at the reflection of the moon, rippling across the surface of the stream. But then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a golden glow. She stood and whirled to face it, her sword already in her hand; but then she laughed, and dropped her sword, and clapped her hands with joy.

It was Kagome, her spirit shimmering in the night, her warm smile glowing as brightly as her radiant body. "Mom!" shouted Izayoi, and she rushed to embrace her mother; but it was like trying to hug a moonbeam, "Mom..." she said sadly, as her arms passed easily through Kagome's insubstantial spirit.

"Oh, you poor dear," said Kagome at Izayoi's downcast face. Kagome's shining hand reached out and touched Izayoi's cheek, and Izayoi could feel the touch upon her spirit, rather than her flesh. "You see," said Kagome, "it _is_ the thought that counts." Kagome laughed, and so did Izayoi.

"Mom," said Izayoi, "I'm worried about Dad. He's not doing well. He...he sacrificed himself to save me... and I don't know if he's going to make it..."

"No, princess, it was _you_ who sacrificed yourself to save _him_," said Kagome. "You don't know how close you came to death in the ordeal with that sword. It nearly killed you. The only reason that you're alive right now—the only reason that all _three _of you are alive, and that the power of that sword did not fall into evil hands—is your determination to give everything you had to save your father's life."

Kagome placed her shining hand over Izayoi's heart. "And you really did give up your life to save his," she said sadly. "That sword _has_ changed you, forever. It has opened you to the full youkai power that you inherited from Inuyasha's father, and the full human power of all the Higurashi that have ever lived. You're a different person now."

"But Mom," Izayoi said, "You know I never wanted power. I just want Shippou, and Dad, and you. I just want to be me."

"And that, my precious little princess, is your greatest power," said Kagome, smiling. "But as for your father: I want you to bring him to the Goshinboku, as soon as you can. Don't worry about hurrying or pushing too hard—just get him there as soon as you can get him there comfortably. Tomorrow is plenty of time to start."

"Mom," whispered Izayoi, "You aren't asking me to bring him there to ... to die, are you?"

"My poor, sweet, dear Iza-chan," Kagome said gently, "_Everybody_ dies." But then she smiled. "But no, sweetheart, you're not bringing him there to die. Everything is going to be wonderful. I promise—trust me."

"OK, Mom. I'll try to get him up and moving tomorrow."

"That's my good little princess." Kagome's glowing spirit started to fade. "Oh my sweet dear, such a great adventure you're beginning...always remember that I'm watching over you, and that I love you."

"I love you too, Mom," said Izayoi, and she smiled as her mother's spirit gradually faded and vanished. She stood alone in the moonlight for a few moments, lost in her thoughts; then, she climbed the hill and returned to the camp. She watched her father for a long time as he slept peacefully by the fire; then she lay down next to him, and put her arm tenderly around him, and very quietly cried herself to sleep.


	7. The Goshinboku

**Death and Transfiguration**

* * *

The Goshinboku

* * *

Izayoi awoke at dawn before anyone else, and quietly began breaking camp. "What's this all about? Why are we leaving?" yawned Shippou as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. 

"We're leaving," said Izayoi simply, not turning away from her packing.

"Yes. That, I see. Why?" asked Shippou.

"Mom told me to," Izayoi said.

"Oh..." said Shippou. "Everything's going to be...OK, isn't it?" he asked gently.

Izayoi stopped packing for a moment and stared at the ground. "Yeah. At least...that's what Mom said..." She laughed unconvincingly. "And we're talking about _Mom_, right? She should know, right? If I can believe anybody, it's Mom...right?" Izayoi quietly began to cry.

Shippou took her in his arms. "My poor Za-chan..._I_ believe Kagome. If she says it'll be OK, then it'll be OK, no matter what it is." Through her sobs, Izayoi haltingly told Shippou about what Kagome had told her the night before.

Shippou bowed his head for a moment, but then he looked up, and his face was calm, and his voice was kind and confident. "If Kagome says it's going to be wonderful, then it's going to be wonderful. That's all there is to it." He gently took Izayoi's shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Have faith in your mother. I mean, like you say, she should know...right?"

"Right," said Izayoi, drying her eyes.

"Well, let's get to it. This place will be here when we get back...and we _are _coming back...right?"

"Right," agreed Izayoi, smiling again.

With the two of them working together, camp was packed up and ready to go in short order. Inuyasha awoke just before they were finished, and was a little puzzled at the flurry of activity. "What's going on?" he asked.

Izayoi couldn't answer; she coughed and looked towards Shippou, who quickly understood and replied, "We're off on an adventure! You're not going to let a little thing like a limp keep you down, are you?"

"Not a chance," said Inuyasha, a long-thought-lost twinkle returning to his eyes. "I've been sitting around here doing nothing for too long. When do we leave?"

"Right now," said Izayoi, and in a flash she transformed into her huge canine form. Shippou lifted Inuyasha onto her back, shouldered their knapsack, and jumped on behind him, and Izayoi soared effortlessly into the air.

"Y'know," shouted Inuyasha over the wind as Izayoi flew swiftly through the chill air, "My brother used to do this, and they tell me my dad could do this, but I never could." He crossed his arms and turned up his nose. "Keh. _I_ was never impressed by this kinda thing. But I've got to admit," he said patting Izayoi's broad back, "It _is_ kinda cool." He turned to Shippou and asked, "Where did she learn how to do this?"

"I think it's a little something she picked up from _Uncle_ Sesshomaru," Shippou laughed, and in their thoughts they heard Izayoi's giggling. "Maybe I'd better let her explain it, though. It's...complicated."

"Keh. Who needs a long story? But I guess this means that she's my _big_ princess, now." Inuyasha lovingly patted Izayoi, and in his thoughts, he heard her laughing voice: "Oh, _Daddy_."

* * *

The journey that had taken several days on foot and several more days floating on Shippou's back took only three days with Izayoi's speed. She landed just outside the Goshinboku's forest, and in a flash resumed her human form. Then, she took Inuyasha's right hand, and Shippou took his left, and the three of them walked into the forest, laughing and chatting happily about nothing in particular. 

Together they entered the glade of the Goshinboku. The last time they had been there was to say their final farewells to Kagome and to scatter her ashes; but there was no gloom amongst the three of them, or in the air. The scent of the trees, the dappled sunlight, and the crisp winter air filled the air with life, and they felt that every breath filled them with new, fresh hope.

"Look!" said Inuyasha. "The stone circle from our wedding." They followed his pointing finger, and saw the circle of white stones, just barely visible under the moss, grass, and vines of the forest floor. "It's still there. I don't know why I never noticed it before."

"Kaede wouldn't let us take it down." They turned, and out of the forest came Miroku and Sango, astride the ever-ageless Kirara. Their hair was gray and their faces had been lined by the passing of years, but their voices were hale and strong. "She said it had become a living part of the forest," Miroku said, "and that the Goshinboku had told her that it was to stay up."

"What brings you here?" asked Shippou, as he helped them dismount.

"Kagome-sama came to us in a dream," said Miroku quietly. "She said that we were to be here today to meet you."

"I was afraid that it meant that something happened to Inuyasha," said Sango. "I'm so glad that he's OK."

"Of _course_ I'm OK," said Inuyasha proudly, clenching his fist and cracking his knuckles. "You think some jerk youkai could get the best of _me_?"

Everyone laughed. Inuyasha made his way to Miroku and Sango, leaning on Izayoi for support, and he enthusiastically embraced them both.

"Inuyasha...you're hurt," said Sango, watching his limp with concern.

"Nah. It's nothing," he said with bravado. He let go of Izayoi and put his arms around Miroku and Sango's shoulders. "We've been through worse, eh?" They nodded, and Sango put her head on Inuyasha's shoulder. "But we always make it through together, don't we?"

"Together," said Sango.

"Together," said Miroku.

"Together," said Izayoi, putting her arm around Shippou.

Inuyasha sighed. "No matter what happens, we always keep coming back here—back to this stupid tree," he said. "I was sealed here. I met Kagome here. I _married_ Kagome here." He blushed. "I, uh, think we might have... made our daughter here." Miroku sniggered, and Sango elbowed him in the side. "I even _buried _Kagome here. Everything always comes back to this stupid tree." He sighed again. "Kagome. I miss her...so much."

"But my dear one...you, of all people, should know that time and death aren't real. Only life and love are real." Kagome's clear voice came from the leaves of the Goshinboku; and suddenly, a blinding golden light burst forth from the great tree. And when their vision cleared, they looked at each other and laughed with joy. Miroku's and Sango's aged bodies were gone, and they were young and strong again. Sango ran her fingers through her glossy black hair, and then through Miroku's; but suddenly, her eyes grew wide with surprise, and a sly smile crept across her face.

"Houshi-sama," she chided him duskily. She gave Miroku a very half-hearted slap with one hand, and pushed his groping hand away from her backside with the other.

"For old time's sake," Miroku said, smiling.

"Not in front of the children," Sango scolded him playfully.

Izayoi looked at herself, and saw that she was nine years old again, wearing her favorite little red kimono that matched her father's. Shippou barely came up to her knees, and he scampered up her legs, sat on her shoulder, and kissed her cheek; then he crossed his arms and squeaked sternly, "Children? I'm older than I look, y'know."

Everyone laughed heartily, and Izayoi said, "Look at Daddy!"

There stood Inuyasha, tall and strong, his every hurt healed, his beautiful long hair blowing in a gentle wind, with a warm smile lighting his face. He smiled at his daughter and his friends—but then, his eye caught something behind them. He opened his mouth, but he could not speak; he swallowed, took a deep breath, and then said, incredulously, "... Kagome?"

Everyone turned; and behind them, wearing the green and white uniform that had seen her through so many adventures, stood Kagome, her lustrous black hair billowing in the breeze, her dark eyes sparkling with joy. "Are you...real?" Inuyasha asked haltingly.

Kagome walked into their circle, and took Inuyasha's hands, and said, "Yes, beloved... I'm real."

"Kagome..." sighed Inuyasha, tiny tears glittering in his eyes; and he threw his arms around her; and everyone cheered, and rushed up to her, and embraced both of them.

After many hugs and kisses all around, Kagome took Inuyasha by the hand and walked with him to the center of the stone circle. "Oh, my dear friends, I'm so happy that we all could be together!" Kagome said cheerily, as she stood with her arm around Inuyasha's waist. Inuyasha said nothing, but buried his face in her hair, and kissed her forehead.

"Kagome-chan," said Sango, "Aren't you... I mean, what is this?"

"This," said Kagome, "is the _real _world, not the shadow land that we always thought was real."

"Does that mean," said Sango tentatively, "That _we _are...all dead, too?"

"Oh, no no no!" laughed Kagome. "Under the Goshinboku, the veil between the worlds is very thin...especially when someone like Iza-chan is on one side and I'm on the other. You're just visiting, for now."

Izayoi blushed, but Shippou pounded her on the back and whispered "Way to go, Za-chan!" in her ear.

"Oh, my dear friends," said Kagome happily, "Our lives in the physical world are so very special, and so very precious, and there is nothing like them in all the universe! It's so wonderful to be alive, even on a bad day... and don't worry, your days on earth are not nearly over yet—so enjoy them while you can! But in time, I promise you, we will meet again, in a place where there is no sorrow, no weeping, in a place where those who were born to be together will be reunited forever." Miroku and Sango looked lovingly at each other, as did Izayoi and Shippou; and Miroku and Shippou each quickly stole a kiss from their beloved, and Sango and Izayoi each blushed and smiled.

"But what about ...you and me?" asked Inuyasha.

Kagome smiled, and took Inuyasha's face between her hands, and she said tenderly, "For you, my dear, dear, dearest beloved... your long night of sadness... is finally over."

Kagome embraced Inuyasha, and he rested his head on her shoulder, his face shining with bliss and contentment. A gleaming golden radiance streamed from the leaves of the Goshinboku, bathing the two lovers with a light that outshone the sun; but as Kagome tenderly kissed her beloved Inuyasha, the light that was their love shone even brighter still. And it seemed as though great wings reached out and gently enfolded Kagome and Inuyasha, wings refulgent with supernal glory; and the air itself quivered and shimmered with a song that was beautiful beyond all earthly music. And the purity of the light that shone from the two lovers and the sweetness of the music that filled the air was more than sight and hearing could bear, and for a moment, they all stood blinded and deafened by the beauty that was before them.

And in a flash, it was over, and they were back in the physical world, in the shade of the Goshinboku. They looked at each other, and found that their bodies were as before; but the weariness of age was gone, and even the venerable Sango and Miroku felt spry and youthful once again.

"Houshi-sama," said Sango, blushing and smiling as she brushed his groping hand away again.

"Now that I've had a chance to compare," said Miroku with a sly smile, "I like it better now."

"Oh, houshi-sama," said Sango, and she kissed him on the cheek; he giggled.

Shippou stood holding Izayoi's hand, back to his normal size. He looked lovingly at her and kissed her hand, but then he looked around. "Where's Inuyasha?" he asked.

Inuyasha was gone. His red robe lay empty on the ground; his necklace and swords lay at its side.

Miroku cupped his hands to his mouth and shouted "Inuyasha! Inuyasha!" but Izayoi stopped him.

"You can stop looking for him," she said quietly. "He's with Mom now. I can hear them. If you listen, so can you." And as they all stood silent, the leaves of the Goshinboku rustled in the wind, and they could indeed hear Inuyasha and Kagome's voices, laughing as happily and as carefree as children on the first day of summer vacation.

Miroku walked towards Inuyasha's robe, and knelt next to it, and folded it carefully. He set the necklace on the robe, and placed the swords across the bundle. "Please help me up," he said quietly to Shippou, who gently helped Miroku to his feet.

Miroku carried the robe and swords to Izayoi. He bowed before her, and presented them to her formally. "As your father received these from the hands of his own father...receive them now today. Bear them with courage and honor as he did, and with them bring honor to your name...and his."

"I will...I swear," said Izayoi, choking on her tears.

Miroku clasped Izayoi's shoulders gently, and kissed her on the forehead. Sango, her own eyes wet with tears, sobbed quietly on Izayoi's shoulder as she embraced her, then she walked with Miroku and Kirara out of the glade, to give Izayoi a moment by herself.

Shippou came up to Izayoi and gently put his hands on her shoulders. "Za-chan...are you OK?" he said tenderly.

"Why shouldn't I be OK?" she said, staring at the ground. "I mean, he's not even _dead_. He's with Mom. He's happy. I know...I can hear them. I don't think he's ever been this happy." Izayoi's voice came in a hushed whisper. "Just...give me a minute. Please, Po-chan?"

Shippou tenderly kissed her forehead, and walked slowly out of the glade to join Miroku and Sango. Just before he left the glade, he looked back; he saw Izayoi sink to her knees, clutching the red robe to her chest, and heard her choked, broken whisper, "Oh, Daddy..." He felt his own heart breaking, and he could bear to watch her no longer; he ran from the glade weeping, and did not stop running until he fell sobbing into Sango's arms, where she was waiting for him at the edge of the forest.


	8. Promises

**Death and Transfiguration**

* * *

Promises

* * *

They were still waiting for Izayoi when the sun began to sink in the west. Shippou was sitting cross-legged on the ground, a nearby tea-kettle whistling merrily over a small fox-fire stove. Kirara in her kitten form was purring contentedly in his lap, and Miroku was looking concernedly towards the forest. 

"I hope she's OK," he said thoughtfully.

"How can she not be OK?" asked Sango. "I mean, considering what Shippou told us about what happened to her...I can't imagine that any of us ever really have to worry about her again. If anybody's going to be OK, it's Izayoi."

"That's not what I meant," said Miroku. "But you're right...if anyone can make it through this, it's Izayoi. She's got her mother's courage and her father's strength. She'll make it through anything."

There was a rustle of leaves. "Someone's coming," said Shippou. Emerging from the forest was a flash of white hair and red kimono; Shippou gasped, "Inuyasha?"

But it was Izayoi. She wore her father's red robe; she carried his swords in her belt, and her own sword on her back. "It's ... what my father would have wanted," she said to their unspoken questions.

"It most certainly is," said Miroku, nodding approvingly. "And you wear it well."

"Well, I guess it's time to be going," Izayoi said. "Thank you for coming to ... to see my father off. I know it meant a lot to him."

Sango nodded and smiled. "Of course, Iza-chan... And remember, it was for you, too, you know."

"I know," Izayoi said. "Take care! I love you, Aunt Sango... Uncle Miroku. I'm sure we'll meet again... if not soon, then with my father and mother, just like Mom promised."

Sango threw her arms around Izayoi, and kissed her cheek. "Don't wait _that_ long, Iza-chan." She ruffled Izayoi's hair, just like she did when Izayoi was a child. "Where are you going?" she asked.

"That..._thing_ that got my father. It's still out there. I can feel it. I've got...unfinished business with it," she said grimly. "I'm going to go take care of it."

"No, you're not," said Shippou.

"What?" said Izayoi.

"You are _not _going to take care of that thing. You are not going anywhere. I won't have it," he said sternly.

"Uh, Shippou," Miroku said out of the side of his mouth, "Trust me...that doesn't work."

"I mean it," said Shippou, stamping his foot angrily. "I absolutely forbid it. _You _are not going anywhere."

"Shippou..." said Izayoi cautiously, "You don't think you can...stop me, do you?"

"Yes, I can," he said firmly. "YOU are not going anywhere...because WE are going."

"Po-chan?" said Izayoi, confused.

"That's right," said Shippou, "YOU are not going after that thing. WE are going after that thing. Inuyasha helped me avenge my father...and yes, I know that Inuyasha's not exactly _dead,_ so I can't exactly _avenge_ him...but still, I owe him. And I can't imagine facing your mother or your father in the next world and explaining to them that I had abandoned their little princess."

Shippou took Izayoi's hands in his, and he smiled broadly, and he said, "So I don't have a choice... and neither do you. I'm going with you, and that's all there is to it. And besides, you have a promise to keep. You remember, something about a home, a family...?" Suddenly, he laughed, and he gave a great shout: "With our friends, and the _whole world,_ as my witness...I swear that I love you, Izayoi Higurashi, and that as long as there is life within me, I swear that I will never, _never_, leave your side."

"And I swear that I love you, Shippou," said Izayoi, her eyes glittering, "And as long as there is life within me, I swear that _I_ will never leave _your_ side."

"So we're swearing now?" laughed Miroku. "I don't know why I didn't do this _long_ ago. You two, get over here, right now!" Puzzled, Izayoi and Shippou walked to where Miroku pointed, and looked at him quizzically. "Sango!" Miroku barked, and when she looked confused, he nodded towards a clump of wildflowers growing at her feet. Suddenly understanding, Sango quickly picked three flowers, and gave one each to Izayoi and Shippou, and put the third into Izayoi's hair.

"Kneel and join hands," ordered Miroku; Izayoi and Shippou complied. Miroku took their hands in his, and suddenly gentle, he said quietly, "Love and honor each other; be faithful, patient, and steadfast in times of trial. Rejoice with each other in days of joy, and comfort each other in days of sorrow. And if you are blessed with children...which, I am _sure_, you eventually _will _be," he said with eyebrows raised, and all three of them snickered, "teach them the meaning of honor, and courage, and faithfulness, and love that endures all things. Will you promise to do all of these things, as long as you both shall live?"

"I do," they each said.

"Then rise," said Miroku. Izayoi and Shippou stood, and for a long moment they simply stared into each other's eyes. "Well, don't just stand there, you idiot—_kiss_ her," growled Miroku.

Shippou laughed, and took Izayoi in his arms, and bent down to kiss her; but she said, "Wait a minute!" Shippou looked hurt and confused, but Izayoi said, "No, that's not what I mean. What I mean is, if we're making it official..." she reached into her kimono, and from it she withdrew a ring. "Mom's wedding ring," she explained. "I know that she'd want me to do this."

Izayoi handed the ring to Shippou, who looked utterly confused. "Ahem," coughed Izayoi, waggling the third finger of her left hand.

"Oh. OH! I get it," said Shippou. "I remember Inuyasha and Kagome doing this." He started to put the ring on her finger, then stopped. "I think I'm supposed to say something, but I don't remember what they said..." He looked into the distance for a moment, then he smiled, and looked into her eyes, and said, "Izayoi...please be mine forever."

Izayoi watched him put the ring on her finger, and said softly, "I will." Then she reached into her kimono again, and withdrew the prayer-bead necklace that Inuyasha had worn.

"Ah...Izayoi..." said Shippou nervously, "You don't ... need to make me ... ah, 'sit' like your mom used to do to your dad, you know..."

"I know," laughed Izayoi, "And I promise...I _promise_, Po-chan... that I'll _never _do that." She bowed her head over the beads for a moment, and they shimmered with a pink and blue glow. "See? The old magic...it's all gone now, Po-chan. Don't worry."

"Oh—OK," he said nervously.

"Trust me," she whispered. Then she raised the necklace over his head and gently lowered it onto his neck, and said, "Shippou...please be mine forever."

"I will," he said firmly. They stared into each other's eyes for a few moments, smiling; then he asked, "Am I supposed to kiss you _now_?"

"Yes, you idiot," she said, grinning; and they kissed in the light of the setting sun, and Miroku and Sango clapped happily, and Kirara roared with approval.

Sango hugged Izayoi, and admired her ring, and Miroku clapped Shippou soundly on the back and congratulated him heartily. Suddenly, Izayoi barked, "Shippou! SIT!"

Shippou squealed in terror and covered his face; but nothing happened. "I'm... I'm OK," he laughed nervously.

"Of course you are, silly," laughed Izayoi. "I _promised _that I'd never do that to you."

"Ah...does this actually do anything?" Shippou asked, nervously fingering the necklace.

"Of course it does," grinned Izayoi evilly. "But you'll find out all about it..._later_."

Sango giggled. Miroku put his arm chummily around Shippou's shoulders and said, "Today, you have learned what it truly means to be a married man." He patted Shippou consolingly. "I'm so very, _very_, sorry." Shippou and Miroku sighed heavily and together hung their heads in sorrow, and Izayoi and Sango roared with laughter.

* * *

"Goodbye! Goodbye! Thanks for everything!" 

Izayoi stood tall and proud in her canine form, and Shippou sprang lightly onto her back. He waved one last time and shouted, "Goodbye! We'll see you soon!"

With a happy roar, Izayoi soared into the air, and Miroku and Sango both smiled as they watched Shippou rest his head tenderly on Izayoi's broad neck as the two of them sailed away.

"Didn't Inuyasha and Kagome say exactly the same thing when they left for their honeymoon?" asked Sango.

Miroku nodded. "Pretty much," he laughed.

They climbed onto Kirara for the journey home, and the great cat soared gracefully into the air. She circled the forest once before heading for home, and Sango and Miroku looked down upon the top of the Goshinboku's regal canopy.

Even though it was not yet midwinter, the Goshinboku had burst into beautiful and glorious flower, and they could easily smell the fragrance of its many blossoms. The leaves rippled, and one last time, they heard Kagome's voice.

"Inuyasha," Kagome said, giggling like a schoolgirl, "sit."

They steeled themselves for the inevitable "thud;" but instead, they heard Inuyasha first giggling, then laughing, louder and louder, rippling through the entire forest, across the fields, and even unto the distant hills. And Miroku and Sango joined in, and so did Kirara, with an eerie but jovial meowling; and for a time, the entire land joyously rang with the merry sound of Kagome and Inuyasha's laughter.


End file.
